


Her Stable Girl

by Applesaday



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Canon Divergence AU, F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-28
Updated: 2016-10-23
Packaged: 2018-03-09 11:50:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 26,024
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3248612
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Applesaday/pseuds/Applesaday
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A heavy storm makes Emma take refuge in a stable. The next morning, she discovers that she wound up in the Mills Estate, under the employ of Cora Mills, taking care of the stables and teaching her daughter horse riding. Many years into the future and in another world, Henry brings his birth mother home, and Regina looks like she's seen a ghost.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Meetings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> On the realm of tackling two birds with one stone, I'm going to be starting this story, as well as fulfilling the "Canon Divergence AU" prompt from SQ Week.
> 
> So, as you probably read, this is going to be an AU where Emma is the stable girl, in Daniel's stead. Now, this is inspired by the amazing shikabane-mai's art [one panel serving as the cover for this fic, and the link for the comic is on my profile], and I'm ecstatic that they allowed me to make a fic inspired by that small comic, so I can't wait to get started on this!
> 
> I've got a really long plot thought out, so I hope everyone enjoys the ride!
> 
> I will give out three points of information as a heads-up [potentially spoiler-ish]:
> 
> 1- Although the comic says reincarnation, it won't be the case here. You'll find out how later on in the story.
> 
> 2- Despite multiple events in this fic that I shan't go into detail here, this will feature a happy ending for SQ.
> 
> 3- This fic will not include either Killian Jones or Robin of Locksley. More details on that further on in the fic.
> 
> Without further ado, let's get this show on the road!
> 
> Oh and italics are past/FTL stuff.

__

 

_From[shikabane-mai’s comic](http://shikabane-mai.tumblr.com/post/53957316542/reincarnation-emma-keeps-her-promise)_

* * *

_Emma pulled her cloak closer to herself, urging her horse, Milton, forward through the storm. It was pouring something fierce, and she could barely see in front of her. She was thankful that the sounds of the guards chasing her had receded some hours ago, when the rain first started._

_She saw that the trees were thinning over to her right side, and she squinted towards that direction, seeing if maybe there was a town or village nearby. Spotting some lights, she urged her horse to change direction, crossing through the sparse trees, and towards the lights. A field spanned in front of them, and they started to make their way through it._

_Now in the open, without the canopy of trees to relieve the brunt of the storm, the rain fell heavier on her. They crossed the open field, Emma trying to politely urge Milton forward, but also knowing that the poor creature's hoofs sunk ever so slightly every step he took, due to the wet earth. After a few minutes, she finally saw that they appeared to have shown up in front of an estate, or rather, behind it. She spotted some stables soon enough, and directed her poor horse towards the large wooden structure, jumping down when they arrived._

_Once she opened the large barn doors, she led her horse through and into one of the unoccupied stalls. There were four other horses already inside the barn, neighing curiously at the new arrivals. Milton seemed relieved to get out of the rain, and Emma couldn't blame him. She herself was thankful for her good luck despite her tough run and hectic last couple of days. Now she would rest, and hopefully be able to get out before the estate's owners found out she was here._

_She collected some rainwater into a bucket, filling it up in mere minutes. "Here you go big guy, you're probably really thirsty. Sorry for straining you today, but we're at least free for now. So you can rest. Tomorrow we'll ride out again."_

_Looking around, she saw a bale of hay looking very inviting. Removing her cloak from around herself, she spread it over the hay, inner side facing up. Thankfully the rain hadn't seeped too much through the thick fabric, so the inner lining was dry enough for her to lie on. She fell to sleep very easily, letting the sounds of rain and her fatigue pull her into unconsciousness._

* * *

_**The next day:** _

_Hearing a throat clearing, Emma quickly shot up, panic settling as she stood and looked at the woman who had obviously caught her. All she had to do was play it smoothly, otherwise she'd be in real trouble._

_"You could've at least warned of your arrival! I assume that you're here as the new stable girl?"_

_Thinking quick on her feet, Emma nodded. "Yes I am, ma'am. I do apologize for my barging in here, but I arrived quite late last night, and thought it would be rude to intrude."_

_It seems that her answer was acceptable, for the woman nodded. "Well, welcome to the Mills estate, girl. What is your name?"_

_"Emma Swan."_

_With a firm nod and an appraising glance, it seems that now she was less acceptable. With her worn clothes, she probably didn't look that professional. "Well I assume you'll be able to hold your own. Now, I don't have much time for chit chat, so I will keep it simple. You will be given an average stipend for doing your job correctly, and keeping this stable and the horses clean. I am Lady Cora Mills, and will be in charge of your employment. You will be housed in the stables for the duration of your employment, and I'll get the servants to bring by some...actual furniture to furnish your lodgings here." Lady Cora looked disdainfully at Emma's makeshift bed, probably wondering what class of barbarian she had just hired._

_"Thank you, Lady Mills." Emma gave a small curtsy for effect._

_That seemed to bolster Cora's sense of entitlement, and she nodded, before turning around and seeming to leave. At the door, she paused, and turned back around. "Incidentally, how good are your riding skills?"_

_Emma gave a nonchalant shrug and a lopsided grimace to convey her answer. Realizing that perhaps the casual answer wouldn't be so well-received by her new employer, Emma said, "Fairly average. I own my own horse and can ride him pretty well."_

_"Good, I suppose you'll do. My daughter has gotten into her that she would desire to receive riding lessons, and since my husband agreed to it, I have been tasked with finding a suitable teacher. Tomorrow I will bring her to you for your lessons."_

_"I look forward to it."_

* * *

_**One year later:** _

_"When will you learn, Regina? Love is weakness."_

_Regina was on the ground, cradling Emma's upper body to her, looking at her mother through eyes blurry from tears. Cora Mills stood imperiously in front of the couple, holding a red heart in her hand._

_"Mother, please, don't do this!" Regina exclaimed._

_"A Queen never begs, Regina, and how else do I expect you to learn your lesson? Clearly my other methods haven't stuck, and I won't have you jeopardizing your marriage to the king for this stable girl." Without another word, Cora began to squeeze the organ in her palm. A pained gasp was heard as the pressure began to build._

_"Mother, no!" Regina tore her eyes away to look at Emma, her sweet Emma, who gave her a lopsided smile, and through the pain, breathed, "I love you. I'll keep my promise, you'll see."_

_"Emma, please don't leave me." But it was futile. The light quickly faded from her eyes, and Emma became lifeless; she was gone. Regina began crying harder, desperately giving her a kiss on the lips, hoping that True Love's kiss would somehow resurrect her, just like those stories said would happen._

_But Emma did not wake._

* * *

**Many years, and a different realm later:**

"Alright kid, here we go, 108 Mifflin Street."

Emma felt drained. This 10-year old boy came out of nowhere to inform her that he was the child that she'd given away a lifetime ago, and that she needed to take him home. Despite her reservations on wanting to get involved at all with the child, the alternative - which would've included putting him back on a Greyhound bus by himself - didn't sit right with her. Which is why she and the kid had sped through the I-95 to get to Storybrooke, his home. It was a pretty quiet ride for the most part, wherein the awkward silence did the job. Though she  _did_  have to endure this far-fetched theory of his about fairytales being real at one point.

Which is why, after an eccentric meeting with Archie - Henry's shrink and Jiminy Cricket, apparently - she was glad to have reached the address given to her, ready to get back to her normal life, without curses or fairytales or long-gone children.

"Please, don't leave!" Henry pleaded, not budging out of his seat.

Emma got out of the car with a huff and made her way to the passenger side of the car, wrenching the door open. "Not my call kid, I have no right to just show up in your life just because we share DNA. Now, you're going back home, your parents must be worried sick, and I'm not about to become responsible of making them wait any longer."

"But-"

She gave him a stern look. "Now."

The kid finally complied, sighing as he stuffed his book back in his bag, and got out of the seat. Slinging the backpack over his shoulder, he stood there while Emma closed the door. "You have to help me!"

"You can ask your parents to help you," Emma responded succinctly, going to pull the wrought-iron gate open.

"I only have my mom, and I don't want to lose her, and  _you're_  the only one who can help!"

Emma knew about the futility that was getting a good family and wanting, wishing, hoping desperately that they wouldn't abandon or leave her. They were still a little ways away from the porch, so she kneeled in front of Henry. "Are you going to be sent back? Is that what this is about?"

"No, but she's the Evil Queen, and I can't lose her!"

Standing back up, Emma fought the urge to roll her eyes. Again with the fairytales. Striding up to the doorway with Henry at her heels, Emma pressed the doorbell, and leaned against one of the pillars, out of the way, with hands in her pockets.

Not a few seconds later, the door was wrenched open, showing a brunette with short hair that brushed her shoulders, and who only had eyes for her son. She knelt in front of him and pulled him into her arms after a quick once-over to make sure he had no visible wounds. "Henry! Are you alright? Are you hurt? Where were you? I was so worried!"

Henry looked at her sheepishly before exclaiming, "I'm sorry, but I found my real mom, and she'll fix everything, you'll see!"

Of course, Henry had no malicious intent behind the words, but both women flinched at the different connotations that they had inferred from his phrase. Regina was stuck on the word 'real' and what that would mean for their little dynamic. Emma was left gaping at how Henry seemed to think she'd fix  _everything_ , let alone any one single thing. As Henry pushed past his mother and went inside the house, he left a kneeling and tearful woman alone with Emma.

Seeing that the other woman was still shell-shocked - and for good reason - Emma pushed herself off the column, and walked towards the other woman, squatting in front of her. "Hey, you okay? Kid seems a bit intense-"

For Regina, it seemed like time stood still.

She hadn't even registered that the supposed biological mother was there as well when she had first seen Henry on the other side of the door. By the time she did realize it, the woman was in front of her, offering a warm smile as she crouched in front of her. And then she focused on who she was looking at,  _her features_ , and she took a deep breath. It couldn't be.

"Sorry we had to meet under these circumstances. Here, let me help you up." Still with a smile on her face, Emma held out her right hand for Regina.

She took it with her own right hand, and it felt like a long-forgotten memory, or taking a sip of water after going for a long time without it. Her touch was  _exactly_  as she remembered it. A strong arm pulled her up, and now they were standing in front of one another, and Regina realized the height differences were the same. She was using all her willpower to not jump into the blonde's arms, or kiss her senseless.  _Her_  Emma had died in her arms, this woman couldn't be her.

Emma still hadn't gotten a single peep out of the woman in front of her, but she didn't want to push her boundaries. It was awkward enough that Henry had said what he did, but this? The woman might chew her out for intruding. Not to mention that the other woman still hadn't let go of her hand, but Emma had to admit she didn't particularly mind the contact.

It seemed that the woman finally came out of her reverie, and flashed a polite smile. "My apologies. I'm Regina Mills, and you are?"

"Emma Swan." Regina's mind was reeling. She even had the same name!

Since they were still holding hands, Emma shook it, as an impromptu handshake. The previously polite smile Regina had had now morphed into a genuine one. It seemed that she had enjoyed the little antic.

"Would you like to come in?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, what does everyone think?
> 
> This fic will be switching between past and present. I will tell everyone that there will be plenty of additional ways this fic will diverge from canon, so just sit back, and enjoy! I'll be updating this fic as soon as I finish with Welcome to Storybrooke, which only has one chapter left, so it won't be a long wait!
> 
> And that concludes my participation with SQ Week, and I'll get back into my regular schedule with Such a Heavenly View and drabbles, followed by A Thief in the Night.
> 
> I'd love to know your thoughts!


	2. Theories

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so I might have been wrong when I said you wouldn't have to wait long. 2 months, yikes!
> 
> So, let's continue, shall we?
> 
> Past is italics, as per usual.

Entering the house, Emma tried to keep her mouth from gaping at the splendour of the mansion. It looked like something out of a magazine, and that worried Emma a little bit, after the shock was gone.

Houses weren't supposed to look like something out of a photoshoot. They should look lived in, there should be a door frame filled with scratches to mark Henry's growth, pictures with the two of them decorating the walls. The pristine white walls looked completely out of place.

"Would you like something to drink? I've been told I make a very excellent apple cider," Regina offered, wanting to ask so many questions to the woman in front of her, but at the same time, she didn't want to scare her off. She saw Emma looking around the house, and had figured that, as hostess, she should take charge of things.

Emma flashed a warm smile. "Sure, that sounds good."

Regina nodded, showing a smile of her own as she beckoned for Emma to follow her into the study.

Suddenly, Emma realized that maybe this woman was just putting up with her for the sake of things, but wanted her out of her house. "I- uhm, I hope I'm not intruding on anything. If you want me to leave, I'll be right out of your hair."

Regina turned to look at Emma, and shook her head. "No, it's quite alright. I reckon we should talk."

The word 'talk' had a lot of different connotations, and that made Emma tense. "Okay, what about?"

Her hostess didn't answer at first, but rather poured drinks for them. After she handed Emma a glass with the cider, Regina gestured to the couches, and they sat across from each other, a small coffee table between them. "Henry, mostly. And what will happen now that, I assume, you are going to want be part of his life..."

Emma quickly intervened, holding her hands up. "Whoa, lady, back it on up, the adoption was closed, and I don't want you to get the wrong idea..."

Regina frowned. "You don't want anything to do with Henry?"

Emma's eyes widened as she realized Regina got the wrong idea. "No! Well, I mean..." she sighed, she probably wasn't really making a good impression thus far, "what I meant to say is that  _you're_  his mother, I'm not going to dispute that, nor am I going to snatch him up from you or something. If you want me to leave and maintain that closed adoption clause, I will totally respect your wishes and leave.

"All I know is that something is going on with him, and I'd like to know what it is, and what it has to do with me. I mean, kids don't suddenly drop everything to chase down their biological mothers two states away just to say hi and drag them back home. And I'm pretty sure that if I left now, he'd just run after me and drag me back."

Regina nodded in agreement, but paused as Emma added, "Plus all that stuff he said about his theory."

"Theory? What theory?"

She faltered here, unsure whether to insert herself into this, and said as much, "Look Ms. Mills, I don't want to cause anymore drama. I feel like I've already done enough damage and barged into your family..."

"Ms. Swan," Regina started, feeling so weird to not just talk to Emma as she remembered, but then again, this wasn't her Emma, "I understand your position is...difficult to say the least, but as you said so yourself, Henry is clearly dealing with something, and I feel that the only solution is to somehow resolve it so that life can go back to normal. Don't you agree?"

Emma nodded, agreeing entirely.

"Good, now what were you saying about his theory?"

So Emma explained the theory Henry had told her, where everyone in this town was supposedly a fairy tale character. When she finished, she asked, "He didn't tell you any of this?"

"No, he has been a bit... distant as of late, ever since I had to tell him he was adopted." Regina sighed, and continued, "He had received an assignment to create his family tree, with his parents, uncles, grandparents, you know the kind. Henry came to me to ask why he couldn't fill in any but one field, so I explained to him, and told him the truth. Ever since then, he's been distant, and I've been afraid to talk to him, because I fear he hates me."

"I think he's just worried about you. He fears he'll lose you," Emma clarified.

"Lose me, why in the world would he think that?" Regina asked, eyebrows furrowing.

Emma bit her lip a bit, and cleared her throat, before blurting out the small part she had omitted from her explanation on Henry's theory, "Because he believes you're the Evil Queen."

Regina thankfully was practised enough to not gape at the admission. "And you said he got this all from a book?"

"Yeah, big fairytale tome, I was surprised he fit it in his backpack."

She gave a small amused smile to Emma before taking a sip of her drink. As she put the drink down on the table, she said, "Thank you for telling me this, Ms. Swan, I will speak to him later about this and hopefully reach an adequate conclusion. Now, I am curious about you. What do you do?"

"I'm a bail bondsperson. I chase people who are running from the law, catch them, bag 'em, and get paid handsomely for it. And from what I hear, you are the Mayor of this town?" It was only fair that Emma got a feel for this woman as well.

Regina nodded slowly. She was using this time to ascertain how similar her Emma and this Emma were. In terms of morality and beliefs, they were similar, but her mannerisms were much less refined. Or rather, this Emma looked more closed off. "Yes, it's been busy ever since I became mayor, but I've managed, even with having to raise Henry. Now Ms. Swan-"

"Emma," she blurted, before clearing her throat and saying, "you can just call me Emma, Ms. Mills."

"Very well, but only if you call me Regina. It's only fair," she acquiesced with a coy smile.

"Alright Regina, that sounds like a deal."

Regina felt her heart skip a beat at hearing Emma call her that, and her breath caught in her throat.

Emma noticed this, and put her cup down. "Hey, you okay?"

When Regina didn't answer, Emma made her way around to sit beside Regina and gently reached out to touch Regina's shoulder. "Regina?"

That seemed to kickstart the brunette again, and she whipped around to look at Emma, eyes wide and mouth slightly gaping, truly uncharacteristic of her as she tried to figure out what to say. In the end she decided for a half-truth. Her Emma had a lie detector, she had once told her, and Regina didn't want to take any chances in case this Emma had it too.

"My apologies, you just keep reminding me of a friend I once had. You look very similar..."

"Oh!" Emma's eyes widened and she smiled sheepishly. "Is that a good thing?"

Regina nodded. Her Emma or not, it was nice to see a familiar face. "Yes, it most certainly is. But," she cleared her throat, this was getting too close to home for her. She stood up and continued, "it's late and I'm sure the road trip must've tired you out. The Bed & Breakfast on Main Street has plenty of rooms available, do you need directions?"

Emma decided to not comment on the whiplash-inducing moment of confusion at how the conversation shifted. She stood up as well, and shook her head with a polite smile. "No ma'am, we passed it on the way here. So I guess we'll talk tomorrow on what to do next?"

"That sounds perfect. Let me walk you out."

They went to the doorway in companionable silence, and just before Emma was about to cross the threshold and head out, she turned back to look at Regina and asked, "This friend of yours, what happened to her?"

Regina took a deep breath and kept her face passive as she said, "She died."

Without further thinking it, Emma stepped back from the doorway and hugged Regina tightly. She wasn't much of a touchy-feely person, but she knew that some people thrived with a comforting hug, and decided that Regina definitely needed it. Regina for her part was stunned speechless with the hug, but it felt oh so good, and oh so familiar. Perhaps a bit stiffer than the hugs she remembered, but she still relished in it.

After they parted, Emma gave Regina a reassuring smile and said, "See you tomorrow, Regina."

* * *

_Emma woke up and quickly readied herself with the meagre belongings she carried. It wasn't much, but she had managed thus far. Plus now that she had a place with a decent infrastructure, so she actually managed to snag a bath._

_Once she was done, she took the 4 horses, as well as Milton, out so they could stretch their legs. She wasn't sure when Lady Mills would bring her daughter around to start her lessons, but she figured that she'd better be prepared and doing her chores. She had taken the time yesterday after she was hired to get to know the place. The Mills Estate wasn't too populated, the family itself was small and enjoyed their privacy, and thus didn't have many servants. From what she had been able to see, there were four other people apart from the noble family._

_Pablo was the footman, Sir Henry's valet, and butler all rolled into one. Maria served double duty as a maid for both of the Mills Ladies, and cleaned the house whenever she wasn't needed. Andre was the cook - and a very good one at that, serving an exquisite dish last night that had left Emma salivating for more - and the last member of the crew was Rodrigo, the groundskeeper, and Emma's mentor. He gave her a quick layout of the place, the schedules kept, and how to behave in front of the volatile Lady Mills - though Emma really didn't need a lesson, she had seen it for herself first hand._

_At around midday, Lady Mills arrived with her daughter._

_"Ah good, you are here. Now, this is my daughter Regina. I will trust you to give her lessons twice a week, and have her in adequate form. Should you find she needs additional lessons, you will let me know."_

_Emma listened diligently and at the end of Cora's speech, Emma gave a small bow of respect and responded, "Of course Lady Mills. You can rest assured that your daughter is safe with me and will learn plenty."_

_Cora seemed satisfied with the answer and left with a huff. Now alone, Regina seemed to peek out of her shell. "Thank you so much for doing this."_

_"It's not a problem. You need lessons, and I'm honoured to teach you. Now, have you had prior teachings before?"_

_Regina bit her lip, clearly much too scared to tell the truth. Emma wasn't deterred however, and slowly approached the young woman, gently placing a hand on her shoulder, propriety be damned. "Hey, you can tell me, I won't go babbling off to tell your mother. Your secret's safe with me."_

_This seemed to be the opening that Regina needed to let her know she had someone on her side, someone she could trust. So she told her new instructor about how, from a young age, she had been fascinated with riding, but her mother had scoffed at its absurdity, claiming that no proper lady needed to know how to ride, except for the customary sidesaddle riding if necessary. So she had taught herself for a few years in absolute secret, until her father caught her, but he didn't punish her - as her mother was wont to do, but she didn't dare tell her new instructor that- and instead taught her. Lately his old age meant that he could no longer teach her, so Regina decided to appeal to her mother again. To her greatest surprise, Cora agreed to it, claiming that they could use hiring someone to help with the stables and have the hand teach her. But Cora believed that Regina was a novice, and not a semi-trained practitioner._

_"I'm sorry," Regina finished. Perhaps she wasn't going to be taught now that she had revealed that she wasn't a beginner._

_Emma merely smiled, keeping her hand on Regina's shoulder. "Don't apologize, I'm glad you told me. So instead of teaching you the basics, we can refine your techniques, and when we have an audience, we can keep it to simpler stuff, sound good?"_

_Regina nodded enthusiastically._

_"Great, now go saddle your horse, and you can show me what you know."_

_The young noble made her way to a brown horse in the stables, greeting him with a gentle rub of his snout, and a whispered conversation. Regina would later introduce him as Rocinante, and Emma would notice that the woman had a knack for horses; she genuinely cared for them, even for the other 3 horses, and Milton too, even though he was a bit antsy at strangers - it was why she got him at a dirt cheap price, the owner wanted to be rid of the anti-social horse._

_Once both Rocinante and Milton were ready, they mounted their respective horses and set of at an easy trot, riding side by side while Emma evaluated where Regina could improve._

* * *

"Henry?"

The boy in question whipped his head up at hearing his mother approach his doorway. He hastily shoved the storybook that he had been poring over underneath the bed before settling in the covers and grabbing the nearest comic book on his bedside table and thumbing to a random page.

Regina entered the room and sighed when she saw Henry seemingly reading a comic book. "Are you testing out some new superpowers?" she asked wryly as she sat down on the edge of the bed by his side.

Henry frowned so Regina gestured with her head to the now lowered comic book still in his hands, "You're reading it upside down."

At least her son had enough sense to look sheepish.

"So, do you want to tell me what this entire adventure was about?"

When her son said nothing, instead finding his comforter very interesting all of a sudden, Regina realized that she'd have to be persistent in order to get Henry to confide in her. "Henry, please, I know that I can't imagine what you're going through, finding out that you were adopted, and I'm sorry for dropping that on you, but please don't shut me out. I only want what's best for you."

That got a small smile from Henry before he cryptically said, "I just don't want to lose you."

"Lose me? Henry you won't ever lose me, why would you think that?"

Henry clammed up again, so Regina frantically wracked her brains to figure out what brought this on. "Is this about that book of yours?"

His eyes widened and he gaped at her. At that moment, Henry quickly wondered if perhaps his mom was a mind-reader. "How did you know?"

"Emma mentioned it, she's worried about you too; since you dragged her all the way here, she'll be staying here in Storybrooke for a few days, if only to ensure that you won't run off to bring her back again."

He gave her an apologetic smile, opening his mouth to say something before his mother cut him off to add, "And don't think you're not getting grounded for the next 10 years, Henry Mills, because you are. But we will talk about that later, now: the book?"

Rather than give her an answer, he reached down to where he had hidden the book and fished it out for his mom. He wordlessly held it out to her, and waited until she took it and began to comb through the pages before saying anything. "Last week, Ms. Blanchard came to talk to me. She saw that I was bummed, and she gave me this book, told me that it had some interesting stories. I started reading it and I'm liking it so far."

It was a half-answer, and Regina knew it. "Okay, that explains the book. Now, your theory?"

At that moment, Henry was somewhat regretting telling Emma about it. She told his mom everything! "W-what theory?"

Regina sighed. Why did this have to be like pulling teeth? "Henry, please help me out here. If you're afraid of losing me, I can't reassure you until I can take care of whatever's causing these fears."

Here was Henry's dilemma. He was convinced his mother was at one time, the Evil Queen. He had also read that the Evil Queen cast a curse that transported the entire realm to Storybrooke, where time had been frozen for about 28 years, taking into account Emma's involvement, and therefore her age, coinciding with the curse's casting. But he couldn't associate his mom with the Evil Queen. He tried for days to find someone else,  _anyone_ , in the town who could likely be the Evil Queen, but came up with nothing. How could his amazing mother, who had soothed all his nightmares and always cheered him up when he was down, be this villain from a storybook?

It had almost been enough to convince him that it maybe wasn't real. But the fact that time hasn't moved ever since he could remember quickly shot the idea down. So the question was, what  _could_   he do? He couldn't very well pretend that everything was fine and ignore all the glaring signs that the town was cursed. So the only option left was to break the curse. But then what would happen? His mother would be hurt, or worse.

No, the only option here was to see if maybe, she could be redeemed. But what if his mom didn't want redemption?

He had to try.

"That storybook, I feel like all the characters there are people...here in this town."

Regina nodded slowly, it coincided with Emma's explanation.

"Is it true mom?" Henry asked, disrupting her thoughts.

"Is what true?" Regina had an idea of what Henry was asking, but she was afraid, what should she say?

"My theory. Are these fairytales real?"

She had long ago made a vow to be honest with Henry. It was why she told him about being adopted. She figured that Henry would appreciate the honesty, but she hadn't considered that maybe, he wasn't ready for it. But this went much deeper than that. This was asking her to admit to a past that she'd rather forget. But with Emma here, how long would it be before she broke?

Both Mills were staring into each other's eyes, stuck in an impromptu staring competition. Regina blinked first, and she looked down towards the book in her hands, ironically turned to the moment when she threatened the entire realm as they were attending Snow and Charming's wedding. "Yes," she finally responded, in a voice so frail and so broken, she herself could hardly hear it.

But Henry heard it, and his eyes widened comically. "It is? So you're- sorry, were, the Evil Queen?"

Regina slowly raised her head to look at Henry, a calculating look on her face as she examined her son. There was an unabashed curiosity there, and it made Regina give a watery smile. There was no judgment in his eyes, or at least, not yet. "Yes, but I promise you, Henry, I will never hurt you, okay? You don't have to fear me."

Henry smiled and shrugged, "I'm not scared of you, you're my mom." Then he grew somber and added, "Which is why I can't lose you."

Once again they were back to the losing her. "Henry, what are you talking about?"

"I know about the curse, how you brought everyone here. I also know that the curse will be broken soon by the Saviour, but I don't want the heroes to hurt you after the curse breaks! You should be given a second chance!"

Regina's heart broke at Henry's concern. She gave a small sigh, placed the book on the bed, and turned her body so that she was now sitting beside Henry on top of the covers, legs spread out in front of her, and her right arm pulling Henry to her side. He burrowed his head and wrapped his arms around her torso, or at least, as best as he could. "Henry, I can't promise you anything," - especially since, deep down, she felt that she would deserve whatever punishment the heroes deemed fit for her - "But I will have to atone for the bad that I did in the past, it's only fair."

"But Emma can help you!" Henry exclaimed, looking up at her, as if he had some grand plan cooked up - which, knowing her son, he probably did.

It was then that Regina wondered how Henry's birth mother fit in to this entire debacle. Surely Henry couldn't know about her Emma, right? "Henry, what does Emma have to do with this?"

"She's the Saviour!" Henry answered simply, while her stomach sunk. No, there is no way that fate could be this cruel and ironic.

Keeping her voice level, Regina asked, "How do you figure that Henry? The Saviour could be anyone."

Henry broke away from their hug to grab the book, and flipped a bit further to the end of it, specifically to the birth of a very important baby. The Charmings' child. "Look," he said, pointing at a baby blanket with the name 'Emma' embroidered in purple yarn.

Regina silently gasped. Her mind was reeling. "Henry, how can you be sure that's her? There are probably a million Emma's in existence, it might just be a coincidence." Deep down, she knew coincidences such as these did not exist. What were the chances that the Saviour, the True Love child of her nemeses, would look identical to her love that she had lost all those years ago, and that had started this entire quest for vengeance?

"It took a bit of time, but Mr. Gold told me," Henry responded.

"Gold!?" Regina asked, appalled. "How many times have I told you to not speak with him? He's a dangerous man!"

"I know mom, but  _he_  approached me."

* * *

_**Last week:** _

_"Good afternoon, Henry," Gold greeted, limping his way over to the bench where Henry sat, thinking with his newly acquired book. "Penny for your thoughts?"_

_Henry gave Gold a polite smile. His mom had warned him to no end about keeping a distance from Gold. Whenever he had tried to ask why, she just said_ "the world is filled with dark and dangerous men, Henry. And he's the worst of them all. You can't trust him."

_Now, having the book, he understood. This was Rumpelstiltskin, the Dark One._

_"Just thinking, that's all," Henry answered, hoping that it sounded polite but firm enough to get the man to leave._

_Gold however, either didn't get the hint, or ignored it. He sat down on the bench, keeping a firm grip on his cane. "That's an intriguing book you've got there. Where did you get it?"_

_"School," Henry replied, deciding to keep his answers vague, but that there was no harm in conversing with the old man. If things got complicated, he was close enough to the Sheriff's station to run and get Graham to help him, and since Gold had a limp, he'd never be able to catch up to Henry._

_"I see. That's an interesting illustration. A baby named Emma. I don't believe I've ever heard of a fairytale character named Emma, have you?" Gold asked, pointing to the illustration on the open page and tapping it twice._

_"She's the child of Snow White and Prince Charming," Henry explained._

_"I see. It's a very beautiful name," Gold mused, and then he added, almost as an afterthought he didn't mean to say out loud, "And it's the same name as your mother..."_

_Henry frowned. "My mom's name is Regina."_

_"Ah yes, I'm well aware of the Mayor's name. But your birth mother's name is a different story, is it not?"_

_He whipped his head around to face the older gentleman. "You know my birth mom?"_

_Gold chuckled, "I know_ about _her. You see, I was in charge of procuring you for your adoption and let's just say, I took a look through some documents."_

_"So what's her full name?" Henry asked, feigning curiosity._

_But Gold saw right through the act. "Planning on finding her, are you?"_

_Henry merely shrugged, and said nothing._

_"I believe her name was Emma Swan," Gold said after a minute of thinking. "I also remember thinking it was funny that her birthday coincided with Storybrooke's anniversary. Almost like her birthday founded this town..."_

_Then Henry got a brilliant idea, and could barely voice it due to his excitement. "Wait, you mean the curse? So you're telling me that my birth mom and the Saviour are the same person?"_

_"I never said that. Besides, that's a fairytale book, and we all know those aren't real, don't we? Now, if you'll excuse me, I must get going," Gold said cryptically, standing up and walking off._

_"Wait, Mr. Gold!" Henry called out for the man after a few seconds._

_Gold turned around but didn't move closer._

_"How did you know what my book was about?" Henry asked. He had made reference to it being a fairytale book twice, and Henry didn't even show him the cover to give him a hint._

_He merely chuckled, and continued walking away._

* * *

Oh she was going to murder that imp the next time she saw him. So he  _did_  know about the curse!

"So, you're certain that this Emma is the Saviour?" Regina asked, trying to wrap her head around this.

"Yeah."

Regina gave a small scoff and closed her eyes leaning her head back. Fate was being ironically cruel then.

"What's wrong, mom?"

She gestured to the book still in Henry's hands. "May I?"

Henry nodded, and she turned the pages back. She wondered if the story was here. The further back she went, the more the tears welled up in her eyes. Her endless years chasing Snow and being so close to catch her, only for her to slip through her grasp, Leopold's murder, her marriage day.

There.

Beside her, Henry gasped. "Is that Emma?"

She slowly moved her hand to trace over the image, showing her and Emma kissing in the stable, just before her mother destroyed everything. "Yes."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's where I leave chapter 2!
> 
> The fic will continue like this, switching between past and present, sometimes there'll be more of one than the other, but this is essentially the formula. And it'll somewhat-ish follow the plot of the show, but only in the most basic of senses. I mean, you can tell just from these two chapters that some things are clearly different, and it will impact things.
> 
> If there's one thing that I absolutely did not understand in the show, was how Henry managed to figure out how he knew that his mom and the Saviour were one and the same. Because let's face it, Emma's a pretty common name. So in this case, Gold told him. He's going to be an...interesting character in this story, so keep an eye out for him.
> 
> Next up will be new chapters for Date in the Name of the Law, and Flirting with Death!
> 
> As usual, I'd love to read your thoughts about this chapter!


	3. Apples

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright let's get cracking!
> 
> I'm loving the enthusiasm for this fic, especially at the fact that I have nearly 100 reviews and this is only chapter 3. It boggled my mind to no end, but it also makes me giddy excited because I'm so enthused to see what you guys will think of this fic as it moves on.
> 
> Also, I promise I didn't name this chapter after me...it's just the central topic!
> 
> Now, let's get going! Warnings for, well...racist Cora.

Henry had demanded that she explain how exactly this Emma doppelganger worked.

"I don't know," Regina replied sorrowfully. She kept looking at the image, noting the small differences between the Emma in town, and the one from the Enchanted Forest. Her Emma had been healthier, more broad-shouldered, and happier. This Emma seemed to be a fraction of that.

"But, she died, right?" Henry asked, turning to the part in the story where it described Cora's 'lesson' in vague poetic details. Of course the book would keep it simple, but then again, she wasn't exactly keen on having Henry know the nitty-gritty details.

Regina nodded, biting her lip as she fought to not cry. Shaking her head, she decided that it wouldn't do to get emotional right now. "Alright, it's late, and you have school tomorrow, young man, so go to sleep, okay? We can talk more tomorrow."

Henry smiled at his mom and waited until she did their nightly ritual of a hug and a kiss to the forehead. "'Night mom."

"Good night mi principito."

* * *

_It had been a long day with riding for Emma. She was impressed with how much her charge already knew about riding, but she could tell where Regina could improve. But that was for tomorrow. After a cordial goodbye, Emma went to join the rest of the staff for dinner._

_When she arrived in the kitchens, she could hear the jovial laughter and talk filtering from the open doorway that led outside. Due to the wonderfully warm day, the workers took the opportunity to gather outside to dine, and enjoy some fresh air._

_"Hey," Emma greeted, sitting down beside Rodrigo._

_"Ah there she is! La gringa!" Rodrigo grinned, giving a raspy chuckle as he wrapped an arm around her to pull her to his side._

_Emma chuckled and the playfully shoved him away. "Knock it off. And what is grin-gah anyway?"_

_Maria smiled good-naturedly at her. "It means stranger. You don't speak any Spanish, do you?"_

_"Un poco," she said with a heavy accent, holding her forefinger and thumb nearly touching. "Just a little bit here and there from my travels."_

_"Ah, you said you were from the White Kingdom, right? How is that like?" Maria asked excitedly. "I've always wanted to go."_

_Emma gave a tight smile, cocking her head a bit to the side. "I'm not sure actually. I was really young when I moved away, and then I just kept travelling. How about you guys? Do you all speak Spanish?"_

_Pablo nodded. "Yes, but Señora Mills wants us to only speak English."_

_The slight derision on their mistress' name was noticeable. "Why?"_

_It was Maria who answered, first looking around to make sure they wouldn't be overheard as she leaned forward and whispered, "She wants us to assimilate. Lady Mills taught us that there are expectations from high society and informed us that we wouldn't make it far if we spoke Spanish."_

_Rodrigo muttered under his breath. "Only she called it 'that barbaric dialect you call a language'."_

_Emma cringed. Talk about harsh._

_"It's also why she only hired us lighter-skinned folks," Maria added._

_Before they could say anything more, Andre had burst out with pot full of what he called paella. "We borrowed the recipe from our friends in the North, and if I'm not being too egotistical, it is quite a delicious dish, so dig in!"_

* * *

"Morning mom," Henry greeted lethargically, shuffling into the kitchen and rubbing his eyes to get the sleep out of them.

"Good morning Henry, did you sleep well?" Regina asked, already dressed in her business suit and primped for the day, readying the coffee machine to brew her morning drink.

Henry nodded, climbing onto a stool where his breakfast already lay in wait for him. He dug in with about as much enthusiasm a 10-year old could have at 8am, but eventually asked, "So what are we going to do?"

"Regarding what?" Regina responded distractedly, spreading jam onto her toast.

"With Emma and the curse," Henry elaborated.

Turning to face him, Regina got a pensive look on her face. "Well that depends. Do you have any ideas?"

It seemed that the topic had hyped him up. He nodded enthusiastically and began to ramble. "Yeah! I mean, we would need to get Emma to break the curse, but first we have to make sure you give everyone their happy endings. That way when the curse does break, everyone sees that you have changed!"

Regina had to admit that the idea seemed appealing, but... "Henry, Emma is the Saviour, which means that she'll be the one giving everyone their happy endings, not me."

Henry shook his head. "No, don't you understand? You two will do it  _together_! Maybe along the way you'll be able to figure out if she's connected or related to the Emma you remember!"

"And how exactly do you propose I get her to stay? I doubt 'please stay and help me bring back the happy endings for all the fairytale characters that I cursed to live here' would have much success." Regina didn't even want to think about the latter part that Henry had said. She wasn't sure she was ready to handle trying to figure out how this Emma fit in with her Emma, nor being in close proximity with her again and keeping a rein on her impulsive urges and feelings.

With a childlike optimism, Henry shrugged his shoulders and responded, "I don't know, you'll figure it out!"

* * *

_"Good morning, my lady," Emma greeted cordially with a bow._

_Regina was coming up to the stables, decked out in her riding gear, but frowned at Emma's greeting. "Please don't do that."_

_"Do what?" she asked as she stood back up straight, frowning and cocking her head to the side._

_"Call me a lady and bow, treating me like a noble. It makes me feel like I'm my mother," Regina responded with an expression of distaste._

_Emma nodded her head in understanding. "I see. Is something the matter?"_

_"No, let's just ride." Without waiting, Regina strode into the stables in search of her horse. From what Emma could tell, something was definitely not right with the young woman._

_Deciding that it wouldn't be well-seen for her to insist, Emma went to get Milton saddled up as well._

_Once they were ready, they rode outside to the field. "What's today's lesson?" Regina asked, not even sparing Emma a glance._

_"Learning how to steer with your legs," Emma said, recalling her own lessons. "Now, let's get started."_

* * *

_At around mid-morning, Emma decided that it was time to take a break. Finding an apple tree nearby, she called out to Regina, "Let's dismount by the tree and rest."_

_Regina nodded, and gently got down from her horse, giving him a nice rub on his snout once she was standing in front of him. Then she reached around and towards the tree branches, pulling out a fresh apple for him to munch on. Seeing Emma standing nearby, she frowned at the indescribable expression on her instructor's face. "What is it?"_

_"Nothing," Emma said, clearing her throat. "Just noticing that you seem to take really good care of Rocinante."_

_"Yes, well, he's very important to me," Regina simply responded, not wishing to open up quite yet to her. Despite the friendliness, Regina was somewhat paranoid. Her mother had ways of finding things out, and the last thing she needed was for her riding lessons to be revoked because she was too friendly to Emma._

_"May I take an apple as well for Milton?" Emma asked, gesturing to the tree._

_Regina nodded with a small smile. "Oh, of course, please feel free."_

_Flashing her an appreciative grin, Emma reached up to grab an apple. She misjudged her grip a bit though, and caused a second apple to fall on her head._

_"Ow!" Emma exclaimed, rubbing her head while she pouted up at the tree as if it had done this on purpose._

_Hearing a small giggle, Emma turned to look at Regina, who was hiding her laugh behind her hand. "Go on, laugh it up," Emma teased._

_"My apologies, but your expression was too funny," Regina said in her defense._

_Emma just waved it off, handing the apple in her hand to Milton, who began to munch on it happily. "It's alright, I have a tendency to blame inanimate objects for my clumsiness."_

_Regina nodded, but then frowned as Emma picked up the apple that had fallen, rubbing it on her shirt sleeve, before bringing it to her mouth and taking a quick bite. "You could pick another apple, you needn't eat it."_

_Shrugging, Emma said, "It's alright, it's still delicious! Best apple I've ever tasted."_

_With a blush, Regina smiled and said, "I'm glad you like it; I've been tending to it since I was a little girl, and has survived even the harshest winters, but I still worry some disaster will strike it."_

_Giving an appreciative nod, Emma said, "I bet. But I'm certain it'll survive for many more years to come."_

* * *

When Emma woke up, it took her a while to remember where she was. Storybrooke, the town that looked right out of the 80s, after the child she had put up for adoption a lifetime ago had come to chase her down and bring her back here. And meeting Regina. Gorgeous, mysterious Regina.

No, no. She needed to just get through figuring out how to resolve whatever what was going on with Henry, and then leave. She wasn't here for the long run, besides, the woman most probably hated her and was just putting up with her. Not to mention that she didn't settle. It was her M.O., to jump around and move when things got too personal and comfortable.

Getting up from the bed, she stretched and yawned. Finding that she was thirsty, she fished her duffle bag for the mug that she kept, and went to the bathroom sink to fill it up. It probably wasn't her most sanitary option, but it was too early for her to head into the diner and be social, so she just made her way to the window, looking at the town in the daylight as she sipped her water. Her impression of the town forgotten by time still stood, though she was pleasantly surprised to note that the clock tower was working.

Just as she was musing about it, someone knocked at her door. Without much consideration to what she was wearing, Emma made her way to the door, opening it a bit to peek at her visitor.

Regina. Opening the door wider, she was curious at what she could want so early in the day.

"Good morning, I-" Regina paused in her prepared speech when she noticed what Emma was wearing. Or rather, what she was lacking. Collecting herself and closing her semi-gaping mouth, she looked back up at Emma and smiled, grabbing an apple from the basket she had, and holding it out for Emma. "Would you like an apple?"

Giving her an amused grin, Emma took the apple, turning it in her hand before taking a hearty bite out of it. After munching on it for a few moments, she decided, "'s good!"

"Thank you. I've had this tree since I was a little girl, and it has always yielded the most delicious fruit," Regina added with an easy smile, remembering a similar scene many years ago. "I was picking apples this morning, and found myself with more fruit than I know what to do with, so here, for you."

Emma's eyes widened in surprise at the basket being thrust into her arms. "Oh! Okay, well uhm, thank you. W-would you like to come in?"

At the nod, she stepped aside and allowed Regina to enter. It was then that she realized her state of undress. "Excuse me for a moment," she sheepishly said, moving to deposit her mug on a table, and the basket beside it. She grabbed her jeans from where they were thrown over the back of a chair, heading into the bathroom to change.

Once changed, she went back out to see that Regina had decided to make herself at home, and was now sitting at the foot of her bed, hands on her knees as she looked around in mild curiosity.

Grabbing the now free chair, she brought it closer to where her visitor was, and flipped it so she could sit on it with the backside of the chair facing forward. "I'm guessing you didn't come all the way here to just drop off a basket of fruits?"

"No," Regina smiled, shaking her head and looking down. When she glanced back up, she saw Emma looking at her with a guarded curiosity. "I wanted to see if maybe we could figure something out in regards to Henry."

"Of course. I'm open to whatever you think is best," Emma nodded, grabbing the bitten apple and continuing to eat from it, resting her arms over the top of the back of the chair. She honestly didn't know what to make of the woman.

"Well," Regina began, shifting to cross her legs one over the other. "I believe that Henry is going through a strange period. As I mentioned last night, he recently found out he was adopted, and that clearly has been taking a toll on him. I would like it if you would stick around in case Henry needs you," - the ' _or if I need you_ ' went unsaid, but it was threatening to burst from her lips - "and take it from there. I believe he just needs to understand the situation, and I don't think I can do it by myself. Of course, I realize this is a lot to ask from you, to essentially uproot your life here for a while-"

"Actually, I don't mind. I've been meaning to move, so Henry's actually lucky in that sense. He could've made that entire trip and not found me," Emma good-naturedly responded, before realizing that perhaps it was too soon to start joking about it.

But Regina didn't take offense. She was glad her son was home safe and sound, even if he did bring back a slew of complications all wrapped up in one person.

"And what about the whole fairytale thing?" Emma asked after a few moments of silence, finishing her apple and throwing the core to the garbage. She wanted to help Henry through this difficult period, but she knew so little on how to help a child.

"What about it?"

Emma tried to figure out how to word it. "Well he's convinced everyone is a fairytale character, and I'm wondering how we're supposed to deal with it?"

Regina bit her lip as she thought, eventually settling with, "I'm not sure. I suppose he has his reasons for believing, but right now, the best course of action is to see where this goes. It might be best to not invalidate his theory, but at the same time keep him from doing something which might hurt him."

"Okay, makes sense, I'll try my best, and if I get stuck, I'll make something up. Though I suppose I got the better bargain, sorry you got saddled with the bad guy role. If it makes you feel any better, I don't think you're a villain," Emma assured her with a smile, eyes twinkling.

Regina was sure that if she had any less control over her actions, she'd probably have surged forward to kiss Emma. The smile, the way she spoke, the confidence towards Regina that she exuded, only made her want to ask one question to the universe:

How was this possible?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that was this chapter!
> 
> Now, next few chapters we'll be delving into the backstories of other characters as well, explaining any differences to OUAT canon as they are introduced and given their happy endings.
> 
> I won't be going too much into details with the horse riding lessons because I don't know much at all about it, and I don't want to take away from the fic by posting incorrect stuff. But if anyone is an expert and wants to share their wealth of knowledge, I'd totally be willing to listen [and I might pick your brain for it as well]
> 
> Since I want to show my thanks for how awesome you all are with your reviews, I'll be giving you a double update!
> 
> So next chapter should be out soon enough!


	4. Deja vu

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know, I feel kinda bad because everyone is all 'how is Emma there?!' and all I can do is cackle and say that it's a mystery.
> 
> I promise it'll make sense...or at least I hope it will. I've already left one hint and there'll be more hints coming up in the future!
> 
> Anyway! Let's get going, and meet the rest of Storybrooke, shall we?

Since Emma was going to be staying, she gave notice to the bail-bonds office, and got a half-hearted grunt for her explanation from Mrs. Vincent, the grouchy secretary. "You'll get your check in the mail," she finalized before hanging up. No love lost there.

Next up, she needed to find a place to stay. Although the Bed & Breakfast was convenient, living in a hotel room with the garish floral wall decor wasn't her style. So she made her way downstairs to the diner, seeking the woman she had met last night as she was booking a room, Ruby. She found the name apt for a woman who had streaks of red running through her hair, and wondered which came first.

Emma found her wiping down the counters at the diner, wearing a very revealing version of the waitress uniform she had seen another girl wearing. "Good almost-noon to you," Ruby cheekily greeted, and Emma saw with a flinch that it was nearly 11. "What can I get you?"

Emma sat down on the stool closest to Ruby, and said, "Coffee and information."

"Coming right up." Ruby turned to grab a mug with the diner's logo on it and filled it up with the coffee from the jar. Once it was topped off, she set it down in front of Emma with the precision that only came with being a waitress for a number of years. "Alright, as Storybrooke's prime center for news and gossip, I am honoured to offer you my services, free of charge," she added a wink and asked, "so what do you want to know?"

"I'm going to be staying in town for a little while longer, so I was wondering if you knew of anyone looking for a roommate, even temporarily?"

Ruby grinned as she asked, "The B&B room not doing it for you?"

Emma made a face of disgust as she shook her head. "Too many flowers."

"True. It was probably there from before Granny got the place. She doesn't like it much either," Ruby explained.

"What don't I like?" Granny asked, coming to stand behind the counter, hands on her hips.

"The flower wallpaper."

Granny groaned and grimaced. "Got that right. Been there from before I got the place."

Emma looked at the interaction between the two women in amusement, and piped up, "So why not change it?"

Ruby turned to her grandmother as if asking the exact same question.

"Never got around to it," was the gruff answer.

Once the owner of the establishment finished checking over which pastries needed to be replaced, she left, and Emma turned back to Ruby. "So, places?"

"Right." Ruby thought for a moment, then she brightened and snapped her fingers. "Mary Margaret!"

Giving Ruby a look to prompt her to continue, Ruby explained, "She's a friend. Nice woman, teaches primary school and has this amazing loft apartment. Not much for privacy in that loft, but she did mention being in the market for a roommate just this morning as a matter of fact. Though I have to warn you, she's a fan of birds, and the flower prints are on her clothes."

Well that didn't sound too bad. "Alright. I'll talk to her afterwards...does she hang out anywhere specific?"

Ruby thought for a moment before shaking her head. "I can text her and ask her to meet you here after school?"

"That sounds great," Emma said, giving her a thankful smile. She drank the rest of her coffee and paid for it, before heading outside. The least she could do was explore the town she was going to be staying at for the next few weeks - at least, Emma envisioned. She found that the change of pace to a small town didn't seem too bad, and if Regina wasn't hell-bent on kicking her out of it, staying around to keep an eye out on her son wasn't the worst idea she'd ever had. And if she really let her mind wander, she found that getting to know Regina herself wouldn't be such a bad idea either.

But of course, for now, she was going to stick to what Regina said, a temporary stay in town to help Henry out; then she would figure out what she would do for the long term, and how welcomed she would be. She figured she could very well think of herself as ending up liking Storybrooke. And the people didn't seem all that bad. Perhaps a bit dazed, as if they had just woken up after being asleep for a long time, but nothing inherently bad.

As she walked along main street, she came across an enigmatic but well-dressed man. He seemed familiar, and then Emma placed him. Mr Gold, she had met him last night as she had been booking her room.

"Lovely morning isn't it, Ms. Swan?" he asked with a polite nod of his head.

"Yeah," Emma responded cordially, wondering how long she'd have to entertain a conversation before it was well-seen for her to book it out of there.

Just then, there was a loud chime, and like it had been planned, every single head turned to the tower that housed the giant clock. The clock that, until last night, had never moved.

"Well what do you know," Gold said with a smile that seemed entirely too devious to be innocent. "It was fixed. I'm glad you'll be staying around for the long run, Ms. Swan, wonderful changes seem to happen with you in town. Now if you'll excuse me."

Emma was left by herself as he walked past her, and by the time she realized to ask him how he knew she was staying for any time at all, he was long gone.

* * *

_"Thank you so much for saving me!" the little girl exclaimed, seeming completely out of breath, but still determined to show her gratefulness._

_"You're very welcome," Regina responded with a distracted smile. She had her eyes on the still-running wayward horse, and her lover on her own horse, who was trying to jump from Milton onto the little girl's galloping steed to stop him. She made the jump, and managed to slow him down, rubbing his flank soothingly and probably calming him down until he braked. Looking around, Emma found where they were standing, and guided the girl's horse, with Milton in tow, towards them._

_"Here you go, your Highness," Emma said as she dismounted, handing the reins to the girl._

_"You know who I am?" she asked excitedly. She probably wasn't recognized too often._

_A flash of **something**  passed by Emma's face for a sliver of a second before she smiled and said, "Of course, your Highness, I have heard plenty of the White Princess and also once saw you passing by."_

_Regina now understood who this young lady was and she nodded._

_"Oh! Just call me Snow," she grinned at them._

_"I'm Regina, and this is Emma," Regina explained, pointing to them in turn, and Emma offered her a small wave. "Now, surely you weren't riding by yourself. Is your instructor or someone else nearby for us to take you to them?"_

_"My father! He must be nearby. We were travelling, and he allowed me to ride for a bit so I could get used to it and learn. If we go back to the road, we should come across him," Snow explained._

_The older women nodded and began to mount their horses, but Snow's reluctance to get onto her steed had Regina turning and crouching to be at her eye level and softly ask, "What is it?"_

_Snow bit her lip and then said, "I don't want to get on my horse, what if I lose control of him again?"_

_Emma piped up, "You can ride with me, your Highness." Beckoning her closer, Emma extended her hand to Snow's, and the young girl took it. Emma easily lifted the young Princess to ride behind her, giving her the opportunity to hide her head into Emma's back if she got too overwhelmed._

_"Emma, you can just call me Snow, really," she insisted once she was seated and had wrapped her small arms around Emma's waist._

_"Right, force of habit I suppose," Emma smiled - not too convincingly, but Snow wasn't looking. Regina **was**  looking and wondered what was going on. She resolved she would ask later. Meanwhile Emma had been tying Snow's horse's reins to the hook on Milton's saddle so he would follow along._

_"Alright, let's go."_

* * *

Emma's trip around the town proved to be fruitful. She was sure she had met half of its residents, perused many of the shops, walked along the harbour, and gotten some delicious fish and chips from the vendor nearby for lunch.

Right at that moment she was talking to Graham, the friendly - if a bit stiff - Sheriff.

"I'm not at all surprised that your job's easy. Storybrooke seems like a really quiet town, like nothing ever happens," Emma said with a smile.

Graham nodded, looking out to the ocean, leaning down against the back of the bench Emma was sitting on. "Essentially. Though I was looking through my budget last night and I found out I have enough for a deputy. Can't imagine I'll find anyone though."

"I could do it, if you want a deputy for a few weeks," Emma offered with a shrug. It would help to fight her oncoming boredom, since she was sure she would grow tired very quickly without anything to do while Henry was in school.

He seemed to think it was a wonderful idea, for he grinned and slapped the bench below him. "Wonderful! If you want to come along, we'll sign the papers and get you your things. Have you ever had any training practise using a gun?"

Emma shrugged. "Handled one many years ago with one of the foster parents I had, so I'm not completely terrible at it."

* * *

"I am going to  _murder_  you," Regina ground out as she barged into the shop, slamming the door open.

Gold, who had been at the back of his shop at the moment she had made her entrance, sauntered over to the front. "And a good day to you, Madam Mayor. What, precisely, have I done to evoke your wrath?"

"Do  **not** play coy with me, you imp," Regina threatened, making her way up to the counter nearest Gold, splaying her hands on the surface. "And wipe that smirk from your face, you know very well what I'm here about."

He wasn't swayed by her threats, instead just continued to stand, hands resting over his cane, smirk still in place. "I'm afraid I'm not quite sure what you mean."

"Oh really? Then telling my son about Emma Swan wasn't you? Just another Mr. Gold in town? And this pervasive plan of yours to somehow revive the lost soul of my beloved and put her inside the Charmings' child to turn her into this Saviour? How did you even manage it? Her body was never found, and from what I can tell, she's identical, down to her name and some of her behaviour," Regina explained, sounding relatively crazed.

Seeing that he had nowhere to run, Gold gave a light chuckle. "Very well, you have caught me. I was the one who nudged young Henry to the Saviour's direction, for she needs to break the curse, as I forecast it all those years ago. As for her appearance and her past doppelganger, I can promise you now that I am entirely innocent to it. I did nothing to cause such an event to happen, but I am sure there is a significance."

Regina was still fuming, having been prepared to fight Gold to get her answers, or at least rip his shop apart. To see him calmly give her answers made her suspicious. "You're not telling me everything, but if that's how you want to play it, then fine. I will get to the bottom of this, and when I do, if I find out you had anything to do with it, I will make you suffer."

Gold merely smirked and said, "Always a pleasure to speak to you, Madam Mayor. Oh and, be sure to give  _Deputy_   Swan my congratulations on her new job. I must say she's cozying herself up very nicely here. As I understand it, she's even looking for a roommate, and has found a potential candidate in Ms. Blanchard."

Regina's frown deepened as Gold finished his sentence, clearly trying to show his omnipotence, but she wasn't intimidated. She refused to.

* * *

By the time Emma was finished with the bureaucratic side of things and gotten some training with her piece - it seemed that the lessons she had all those years ago  _had_   stuck - she was finally allowed to leave, and found that it was just in time to meet Mary Margaret.

Adjusting her Deputy badge onto her hip, she made her way to the diner, and once inside, found Ruby talking to a young woman with black hair in a pixie cut. "Here she is now!"

Emma waved and made her way over to the duo. "Hey," Emma greeted, holding her hand out.

Mary Margaret took it, looking almost in a trance as she shook it, eyes raking over her face. "I'm really sorry, but do I know you from somewhere?"

Frowning, she shook her head and responded, "Nope, sorry, you must have me confused with someone else."

"Maybe," Mary Margaret acquiesced, but she still seemed to be thinking. "I wouldn't be able to tell you where I remember you from, but gosh, you seem  _so_  familiar!"

Ruby, who was watching the exchange with interest, piped up, "Well she does look a bit like you, maybe she reminds you of a relative?"

Mary Margaret studied her carefully before settling with a shrug. "Maybe... But anyway! Ruby said you were in the market for a place?"

"Yeah, I'm not too sure for how long, but I'll still help pay the rent, split grocery and utility bills," Emma said, hands in her pockets.

"Great. I can show you the place if you want to see how it's like. Are you going to move in now?"

Emma nodded. "Yeah if possible. I'd just need to get my stuff from Boston tomorrow, but I'd like to move in as soon as possible."

Mary Margaret looked ecstatic. "Alright, let's get going! Bye Ruby!"

She began to excitedly drag Emma away, so she let herself be taken, but took the time to wave back to Ruby and say, "Thank you!"

* * *

_"I can't do it," Regina sobbed, arms curled around her legs, chin resting on her knees._

_"Shh, it's okay Regina, everything will work out," Emma murmured soothingly, an arm around her lover's shoulder, rubbing calming gestures with her hand._

_"How? I'm set to marry the **King** , not a lot of ways for that to work out in my favour," she sniffed, before adding venomously, "I wish I had never saved her."_

_Emma gave Regina a kiss on the side of her head. "Don't say that. You're a good person Regina, you saved her because you saw a child in danger and you knew that was the right thing to to. And I'm sure that if it was the case, you'd do it again and again."_

_Regina gave an amused snort. "We'll see. And why do you sound so sure that everything will work out? I don't think mother will allow you come with me, there'd be no logical sense to it."_

_"Call me a hopeless optimist, but I'm certain we'll find a way to be together," Emma smiled. "And you know what, I've got an idea how. Let's run away together."_

_"Run away?" Regina asked bemused. She was sure her lover had lost her mind._

_"Yes! Tomorrow night. We'll pack our horses and leave, and make our own life, get a house of our own, take in a child to dote on, how does that sound?" Emma asked excitedly._

_By that point, Regina was nodding enthusiastically, tears gathering in her eyes. "It sounds wonderful Emma, let's do it."_

_Emma smiled brightly and then got up and said, "Give me a second."_

_Once she came back, she had something in her hand. It was a dirty and torn small box, and when she opened it, a ring was nestled inside. "Regina Mills, would you do me the honour of marrying me?"_

_Regina was ready to respond to Emma, but was interrupted by a loud gasp. They whipped around and saw the open barn door, and a small figure retreating. "Snow..."_

* * *

When Regina went to pick up Henry from school, he barely managed to reach her before he was already asking, "So, did you talk to her? Is she going to stay?"

Regina smiled and nodded, "Yes. She seems to be very interested in your well-being, so we have to do this carefully. Now, let's go home and we can figure out how we'll get this town their happy ending, shall we?"

Henry's grin made her heart soar. Maybe somehow, she herself could get her happy ending as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that was all for today!
> 
> Next up we'll be delving into everyone's backstories a bit further.
> 
> I just wanted your opinions on the flashbacks. Do you like how they are so far? Should there be less of them? Should they just be in a separate chapter? Do you like the jumping around of subjects, or do you prefer it to be chronological? I'm right now sort of basing them on how ouat does it, so I want to see how it's translating to this fic.
> 
> Meanwhile I'll be updating How many times can a heart break? then drabbles, followed by Date in the Name of the Law!
> 
> I'd love to know your thoughts.


	5. Young Love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And I am back yet again! Super sorry for the delay as always!
> 
> Thank you so much on the feedback regarding the flashbacks, I'm really happy they've been good thus far!
> 
> Now, let's get back into it, shall we?

"Okay," Regina said, setting down a tray of cookies down on the coffee table. "I'm assuming you have a plan?"

Henry nodded, quickly swiping a cookie and wasting no time munching on it. "The ultimate goal is to get everyone their happy endings, but the focus is Snow, Mary Margaret. Since she was the one who the curse was intended for, her getting her happy ending should be the thing that'll break it, right?"

Regina wasn't too sure. Gold hadn't really delved into the nuances of how the curse would break, only that it would be Emma's doing. But considering that, like Henry pointed out, the curse's entire reason for being was to end Snow White's happy ending, it was a safe bet to assume as much. "I suppose."

"So we should leave her for last. If she breaks the curse too soon, we won't be able to show everyone you've changed!" Henry concluded.

Keeping Mary Margaret miserable for a little while longer made the still vengeful and spiteful side of her content, so she agreed. "Did you have someone in mind to start on?"

The young boy had been wracking his brain trying to decide who would be first. He figured he should start with Snow White's story, and work his way from there, trying to find a person that needed their happy ending. And he had found them. "Yeah. Princess Abigail. Prince Charming's ex-fiancee."

"Ah." She had seen the young paralegal working for Albert Spencer, the District Attorney. Regina had never made her acquaintance back in the Enchanted Forest, thinking her a spoiled brat who never had to raise a finger to get what she wanted, but apparently the reality was a little bit different. "I never got to know her all that well."

"You should probably read the book," Henry said, pushing the big tome towards her. "It'll help you understand. And come up with a plan."

* * *

_"My daughter," Abigail looked up, hearing her father's voice. She rubbed at her wet eyes, clearing the blurriness away. King Midas made his way and sat down beside her. "I have tried everything. Nothing short of a deal with the devil would undo it."_

_Abigail swallowed heavily, not needing an explanation on what her father meant. Rumpelstiltskin granted Midas his wish to get his people out of poverty by converting everything he touched into gold. But it had been a curse in disguise. The Dark One had interpreted his wish literally, and now everything that he even brushed with his fingers would be instantly converted to gold, even if he didn't want it to do so. Since then, he wore a special pair of gauntlets that stunted his accursed powers, and he vehemently denied to call upon the vile man for a solution._

_Despite that, things had been going well for a while. The kingdom was prospering, and Abigail had found love that her father approved of. But unfortunately, the brave Frederick, her beau, had been protecting his king one day, and was accidentally touched by Midas' cursed hands. He didn't have any chance to escape, and was converted into a fully gilded statue within minutes. She had tried to kiss him, spent hours bringing her lips to the golden visor, until her lips were bruised and bleeding from tiny cuts where the golden metal scratched the sensitive skin there._

_With all her failed efforts, she figured that nothing worse could come along. But then after a few months of wallowing in her misery, her father came with more terrible news._

_"Marriage?" Abigail's eyes were about to bug out. Her heart had sunk to her toes, and her world was crumbling around her._

_King Midas sighed. "I'm sorry to put you in this position, but we need more protection, and King George has offered all the support from his army, as long as we agree to marry you to Prince James, and fill his coffers with money."_

_Abigail made a face. "James? He's terrible! A womanizer who destroys everything in the name of sport. He only looks for trysts and the next score, he wouldn't know how to rule a kingdom."_

_He had heard much the same, but he had thought ahead. "Well actually, I had much the same fears as you, so I put him up to a test. He defeated the Behemoth in fair battle, and then his dragon single-handedly. I truly believe him a changed man. He returned the remains of the soldiers who went with him and didn't come back alive to their families. Not only that, but he has been helping those families with the harvest, lending a hand when they had no more hands to help."_

_"But he isn't Frederick," Abigail responded, pursing her lips._

_"I know my daughter, but I have no way to bring him back. At least do this for your kingdom?" Midas sighed._

_She glared at him for a few moments, but eventually relented. If she was to be unhappy, why not go all the way?_

* * *

Regina read the entire book in one night, staying up well into the wee hours of the morning perusing the stories within its pages. Although she was certain that many of the stories were skewed - her own story was testament to such blatant bias - she felt something of a pang for some of the stories she read.

Especially of that of Abigail, Kathryn. It was clear her choice in marriage hadn't been much better than her own. But she got her happy ending, something that Regina hadn't been given.

The next morning, she returned the book to Henry. "So what is the plan? Find Frederick and reunite them?"

"Yep!" Henry beamed.

Regina had to admit it was quite an innocent strategy. "And what should I tell Emma?"

Henry shrugged. "Just tell her you're matchmaking them."

"And how do you know what matchmaking is?" Regina asked with an accusing glance.

"I need to change and get to school," he blurted and rushed out of the kitchen, going back to his room.

Shaking her head, she let him go, deciding that the new problem would be working with Emma. It wasn't that she was scared...well, maybe a bit. She was worried that she would slip up. It would be too easy to forget that she wasn't her Emma, and accidentally kiss her. Or even worse, have her find out that she was the Evil Queen. What if Emma found out and took Henry away from her?

What if she hated her?

No, she couldn't think in those terms. She had to think positive. In fact, she remembered that her Emma had quelled some very similar fears many years ago.

* * *

_"Emma?" Regina asked, shifting from where she was lying, in Emma's arms. They were in the stables, a small room that served as Emma's bedroom. It didn't have a fireplace, so she had about five layers of blankets to help her ward off the chilly night air that drifted in through the thin wood. It was how she coerced Regina to join her, smooth words about sharing body heat that had her rolling her eyes but still relenting and joining her lover, enjoying the feeling of being cocooned by her strong arms. She never wanted to lose this._

_Which led her to a few worrisome thoughts._

_"Yeah?" Emma responded, turning to look down and meet her girlfriend's eyes._

_Regina bit her lip, and then voiced her fear, looking down as to not see Emma's reaction to her ludicrous question. "You'll always stay with me, right?"_

_"Of course," Emma readily supplied. "What brought this on?"_

_"My mother. She's always trying to mold me to be a perfect image of her, and I'm worried." Regina chanced a glance, and saw only pure admiration in Emma's eyes, which prompted her to continue. "What if I do turn into her and chase you away?"_

_"Hey." Emma shifted so they were lying side by side, and then reached forward to cup Regina's cheeks and deposit a soft kiss on her lips. "First of all, you're not your mother and I'm certain you'll never be her. But most importantly, you couldn't possibly chase me away. I'll love you unconditionally, trust me on that. I promise you that no matter what you do, I won't leave. In fact, even if you try to push me away in fear, I'll stick around. You'll always have me Regina."_

_And Regina believed that. It made her heart swell. She'd never be alone, and she'd have the company of the woman she loved to always remind her that she was wanted._

* * *

With a resolute air, Regina walked into the station. She found Emma manning the place by herself, leaning back in her chair, eating some greasy fried pastry that most likely was terrible for her health.

"Good morning," she greeted.

It seemed that Storybrooke's newest deputy was distracted, to the point that she had been unaware of Regina's presence. That led her to yelp loudly and jolt when she did realize that she had a visitor, thereby losing her precarious balance. The chair would've most certainly toppled over onto the floor and thrown Emma onto her back if it hadn't been for Regina's readiness and quick reflexes, who reached forward and caught the back of the chair with her left hand. An awkward air filled the room as Regina's unprecedented move led to them being in very close proximity, Emma clutching the seat of her chair looking up at Regina's face, inches away from her own as she leaned above her.

They maintained eye contact for a few moments, frozen in their positions, and it took all of Regina's willpower to not close the distance. Not yet, her mind supplied. She couldn't jump to just randomly kissing the woman, as much as she wanted. First she had to know if Emma was even looking for a relationship with her. Maybe she was looking to get the hell out of dodge as soon as she could, and a relationship was the furthest thing from her mind.

But, one thing that did make her smile internally was that Emma had the same goofy look that she remembered. Her Emma or not, this Emma was definitely attracted to her.

Clearing her throat, Regina helped to right the chair, and then sat down on the visitor's chair on the side of Emma's desk.

Emma cleared her throat, getting her bearings and trying to appear calm and collected. "Hey, sorry about that. Is everything okay?"

"Yes, I was wondering if you would like to help me with something," Regina said, getting right down to business. Pleasantries were something that she had dispensed of a long time ago. Although she would love to talk more with Emma, she didn't want to have her heart broken once again, and making a connection would mean it'd be that much easier to have her heart broken if anything went wrong. So she stuck to the bare minimum.

"Sure," Emma responded, an easy smile gracing her face. "What exactly is this about?"

"Henry's fairytale thing," Regina said, using Emma's given title for the situation. "He wants to give the town their happy endings, and at the same time show everyone that I am no longer the Evil Queen. After some deciding, we have someone to start with."

Emma nodded along, her face not mocking or disbelieving. When Regina finished explaining, she raised her eyebrows in amusement. "Oh really? Who are we granting a happy ending to?"

"Kathryn Nolan, a paralegal for the District Attorney, and princess Abigail in the old land."

"Wow, how did a princess become a paralegal?" Emma asked, chuckling.

Regina joined in with a small laugh of her own. "Beats me. Must be something in her attitude."

Emma put her hands up placatingly. "I mean, don't get me wrong, power to her for going for that, but anyway, how are we supposed to get Kathryn her happy ending? Rig the lottery?"

Now Regina let out a fuller laugh. "Nothing quite that complicated. No, we just have to reconnect her with her true love."

"And who would that be?" Emma inquired, very intrigued.

"Jim Knight, local high school gym teacher," Regina supplied.

Emma's eyes brightened. "Oh I know him! I saw him at the gym this morning!"

"We have a gym?" So much for being an informed mayor.

"Yeah, run by a short little guy with anger issues named Phil," Emma added, holding her hand up to about how tall this Phil was - he was barely a head taller than the desk.

Regina hummed. "Nonetheless, the point is that we have to set them up, as they are each other's true love."

Emma raised her hand. "Question. What happens if they don't get along? I mean, we have no guarantee this'll work. We can't just go 'hey, our kid thinks you two are destined to be together because in a fairytale book, your supposed alter-egos are living happily ever after'."

Deciding not to dwell on how great it sounded to have Emma say 'our kid', Regina said, "Well, that's the great part about it, we don't say it like that. We just set them up, like matchmaking. If it doesn't work out, then we tried our best, and move on. We don't guarantee anything."

She thought about it for a minute, and could see the logic. One other thing that Emma thought about was that if the idea failed, it might show Henry that his theory wasn't so real. Not that Emma wanted to destroy the kid's spirit, but constructing this entire idea that the town was inhabited by a bunch of cursed fairytale characters was a bit far-fetched, and definitely couldn't be healthy for him to think in those terms. She didn't voice it, knowing that Regina probably didn't want to hear it. She would be supportive. "Okay, so how exactly do we do this? We can't just go up to them and say 'hey, I think this person would be great for you.'"

"That's why we're not going to do that. What we are going to do is gain their trust, and when the time comes, we can suggest it."

"Fair enough. So I become friends with Jim and you get Kathryn?" When Regina raised an eyebrow, Emma elaborated. "I've already talked once with the guy, so being his friend wouldn't be a problem, and if Kathryn's a paralegal, she's all up with the intellectual side of things, so you two would get along famously."

"My qualm isn't your choice of who to work with, but the prospect of becoming friends with them," Regina elaborated.

"Oh come on Regina, don't be such a porcupine."

"Excuse me?" she asked, sounding vaguely affronted, though she was mostly confused.

"You know, prickly and anti-social. It'd be good for you  _and_   your image as mayor would boost, knowing you have friends around. Surely for campaigning it'd be great publicity to get the town's trust."

Regina couldn't argue with that logic. "Still, a porcupine? Really?"

Emma snorted in amusement. "Yeah! Porcupines are cute but damn they sting."

"Are you calling me cute then?" Regina had no idea where the playful an relatively flirty line had come from, but she went along with it, even with a mischievous smirk to go along with it.

It was worth it to see Emma flush and stutter as she tried to come up with an adequate response. Taking mercy on the poor woman, Regina merely smirked wider and let out a laugh, before getting up and walking out of the bullpen. "Have a good day, deputy."

"Wait," Emma called out, and got up from her chair, jogging up to where the mayor had paused. "How'd you know I became a deputy?"

Regina raised both eyebrows, amused. "You're in the police station, which isn't open to the public dear. If you weren't a deputy, I'd call the Sheriff to charge you with breaking and entering."

Emma winced as she realized how silly her question sounded. "I mean, you knew to find me at the police station, I didn't get a chance to tell you."

"I know everything in this town," Regina breezily responded. She didn't want to mention Gold, and she'd have heard anyway from Graham eventually.

"You didn't know about the gym." Emma was quickly trying to recover being caught off-guard with the cute comment that she was determined to catch Regina speechless.

"I merely forgot about it, an understandable fact since I don't frequent such a place."

Emma smiled, letting Regina take the win. She clearly had an answer for everything, so she decided to change tack. "Fair enough, so how about keeping in touch? Or do you have my number already jotted down somewhere as part of your Big Brother routine in town?"

Regina couldn't help but be enchanted with Emma. "Alas, I haven't mastered  _that_   quite yet, so if you would like to tell me your number..."

They exchanged numbers, and as Emma was putting her phone back into her jeans pocket, she asked, "How about texting? Are you the kind of person that frowns upon texting and thinks phones are only to talk?"

"Not at all, but I'm not a particular fan of acronyms or initialisms, they're too confusing."

Snickering, Emma asked, "Oh really? Prim and proper I see. Do you also have a policy against swearing?"

Regina merely leveled her with a glare. "And what makes you think that? Assuming isn't the wisest thing to do. For all you know, perhaps I swear like a sailor, given the right situation."

Emma looked impressed, and decided that one day, she'd want to be present for that phenomenon. When they parted ways, they agreed to meet up in a few days, hopefully with news that they were now friends with the would-be lovers.

* * *

_"You'll help me then?" Abigail looked entirely puzzled that her supposed fiance was actually helping her to rescue her old lover._

_Prince James nodded, a sincere smile on his lips. "Of course. I'll get the water from Lake Nostos, and it'll hopefully undo the curse on Frederick."_

_Abigail refused to believe everything was so cut and dry. "Why? What do you have to gain from this?"_

_"Precisely that." When Abigail didn't let up with her questioning glare, James was forced to explain. "You think I have something to gain, an ulterior motive, and I don't want people to think of me like that any longer. Before fighting the Behemoth and the dragon, I didn't have a care in the world, I did what I wanted, and nothing my father did or said could set me on a more righteous path. But then, when we went to battle the dragon, the men who came along didn't trust me. They snickered about how I was a coward, how I wasn't a real hero, and I vowed that, if I survived, I would change._

_"So, here I am, changing," he beamed. "Plus Snow has coined me as Prince Charming, and I can't exactly be a rude ass if that's the case."_

_She believed him. She could tell, from the time they had spent together, that he certainly wasn't the jerk she had heard about. And they both knew their hearts belonged to another, so they were going to do their best to help each other out._

* * *

The next morning, Regina found Kathryn sitting alone in a booth at Granny's, and steeled her nerves. She had conquered kingdoms, surely she could talk to one woman and attempt to befriend her?

Apparently it was easier said than done. Her brain was ringing all the panic alarms, and at that moment, she was seriously wishing she had the option to go conquer a kingdom instead. But then she thought of Emma. This might bring them closer together. So she took a deep breath and walked up to Kathryn. "Is this seat taken?"

Kathryn jumped in surprise, eyes bugging out at seeing that the Mayor was standing in front of her. "Oh! Madam Mayor! Certainly, please have a seat."

With a courteous smile, Regina sat down across from Kathryn, and pulled a menu towards her.

"To what do I owe the pleasure?" Kathryn asked after a few moments of silence. She had expected for the mayor to start talking about why she had wanted to sit with her, but she was staying quiet.

"What do you mean?" Regina looked up from her perusing the menu.

Gesturing generally in the mayor's direction, the paralegal attempted to explain. "Well it's just...you don't often join people, I'm just wondering why I got such an honour."

After some quick decisions, Regina decided for a fraction of the truth. "I was told that I could stand to make a few more friends in town, and you seem like a good choice to start with."

Raising her cup of water in a silent cheer, Kathryn responded, "I'm flattered. Here's to a good start!"

They talked for most of the morning, and would've continued longer if Spencer hadn't called Kathryn, sounding none too happy that she wasn't at her desk. "Sorry, I do have to go."

"Not a problem," Regina waved it off, trying to hide her surprise at how quickly time had flown. As they were packing up and heading out, Regina decided to voice an observation. "You don't seem too happy with your job."

Kathryn made a face. "That's because I'm not. He's a prick who honestly needs to get a better personality."

"Why not just leave?" Regina quickly wondered if there was a job in town hall she could give Kathryn, but nothing stood out as something of her caliber.

"I wish. But I have to save up money to go get my law degree, and this experience would help me."

Regina doubted that working for a actually non-existent District Attorney would be worth anything, and neither could Kathryn leave town, but she still shook her head and offered, "How about I try to find something for you at Town Hall? Is there anything you can think of at the top of your head that you'd enjoy doing?"

"At this point, I'd be good with anything, hell, if you need a secretary, I'd be game for it."

"Really? It wouldn't be dull?" Regina wanted to be sure she knew this wouldn't be a high-stakes job, or overly busy.

Kathryn shook her head. "You clearly have never worked for Albert Spencer. I'd prefer watering a ficus all day long if meant I didn't have to see the sleaze again. My job position might be titled paralegal, but I was a glorified gofer. A secretary would be a step up from that."

"Fair enough. I'll give you some time to think it over, okay?" Regina was surprised. In under a few hours, she had gotten a new friends and perhaps a secretary. She'd never felt the need for one, but perhaps it'd help to have a friendly face around helping at the office. Especially if things around town were changing, she'd find that the bureaucratic side of things might get busier.

And so it was that for the next few days, Regina and Kathryn built up quite a camaraderie. Kathryn had decided to take Regina up on her offer, and would be resigning in a few days, she just didn't want to leave any loose ends, an understandable and admirable quality, Regina noticed.

Her plan with Emma still stood, so it was on an early Friday, while they were eating breakfast, that Regina saw Emma walk in with Jim in tow. They had both clearly come from their workouts, and Regina tried not to notice how tightly the clothes fit on Emma, the rippling muscles seeming quite attractive, and instead took the hint and started to shift the conversation. "I was thinking, one topic you haven't talked about much about romance."

Kathryn looked bemused. "Oh? Didn't know my soon-to-be boss was so interested."

"I'd still be your friend I believe. Can't I have a vested curiosity?"

"You can," the blonde agreed. "I don't have anyone in mind, but I'm looking."

"Well, how about..." Regina made a show of looking around the busy diner for a worthy candidate before landing on Jim. "How about tall and handsome over there in the blue hoodie?"

Kathryn subtly turned to look, and she saw the blush creep up onto her friend's cheeks. "He's cute, I'll admit that. But are you sure you don't have an ulterior motive for asking?"

"No?" Regina responded, unsure why her new friend was smirking knowingly.

"Oh of course, and it has nothing to do with our new deputy and how you keep looking at her and talking about her every now and then."

"I'm sure I have no idea what you're talking about."

Kathryn snorted. Then she turned back to look at Jim, and saw that both him and Emma were staring in their direction. She winked at the workout duo, and Jim gulped, smiling shyly.

"You should probably ask him out before he balks and collapses onto Emma's arms," Regina taunted.

"Are you sure you wouldn't want that? Get to see Emma's muscles in action?" Kathryn riposted, shutting Regina up, cheeks heating up. "But fine, I'll ask him out, only if you plan on getting a date with Emma too."

Looking back at the woman in question, Regina bit her lip. Technically in the past, they were lovers, so it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to believe that she could be happy with this Emma. "Okay deal."

With a triumphant smirk, Kathryn stood up and went over to Jim. After a few minutes, she returned victorious. "I've got a date!"

Her phone buzzed, and she quickly glanced at Emma's message.

_Seems our work with these two are done. If this fairytale business busts, we might be able to make something as matchmakers for the town :)_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that was that!
> 
> Emma and Regina are being adorable, while Kathryn and Jim are getting their date!
> 
> I hope no one minds if we have a few flashbacks that also explain other characters, but while I was planning for this story, I started to think about what I wanted for this, and fleshing out the characters made sense, plus tweaking a few backstories to fit a better purpose.
> 
> Plus it'd be more in line with an actual twist to fairytales, don't you think? Kind of like "this is what OUAT should've been" kind of deal.
> 
> Anyway!
> 
> As I think will become tradition, I've got my super holiday update extravaganza in which I try to double update all my fics for the holidays. This was the first update, so a second will be coming up in a few days, and I'm certain the next chapter will be very well received, since it'll have something that I'm sure everyone will be happy about.
> 
> No, you won't find out quite yet how Emma is in Storybrooke, sorry!
> 
> I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter, and I'd love to know your thoughts.


	6. First Dates

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part 2 of the double update!
> 
> Things are moving forward, so let's get started!
> 
> Also, the ouat midseason finale was just...yeah let's not even.

As part of her plan to let Emma get to know Henry, Regina had instated Emma as the one to pick up Henry from school. And today, Regina was extremely grateful she had done so.

The reason for that was because Regina was nervous about having to see her again. She was sure that the minute she stepped outside, fate would have Emma find her somehow. Considering that Kathryn had practically dared her to ask Emma out, it was understandable that she was scared. What was worse was that she _wanted_ to ask, but what would happen with the truth regarding the curse? It wouldn't be fair to form a relationship based on a lie. Would she be better off telling Emma about the fairytales now? What if Emma didn't believe her?

Or worse, what if she  _did_  believe her, and didn't want anything to do with her? It was a never-ending loop of if's and maybe's. But she had to take charge. She couldn't live in fear.

* * *

_The sun was shining high, warming both Regina and Emma's clothed backs as they rode around. The lessons had progressed quite a bit in the past few weeks, and Regina was brimming with talent. It was clear she would one day be a very accomplished rider._

_Emma caught up with Regina and said, "We should return."_

_Regina nodded, and together they rode back to the stables, with Emma quizzing her on some moves as they made their way over there, watching as her charge performed everything flawlessly._

_Once they arrived, they silently removed their respective horse's saddle and brittle, before brushing their horses and leading them back to their stalls. Once they were done, Regina could tell Emma wanted to ask something, so she prompted her with "Is there something on your mind?"_

_Looking surprised at being caught, Emma then quickly flashed a shy smile. "I was wondering if you would like to have a meal with me?"_

_"I'm afraid I don't understand..." Regina said slowly. Her instructor seemed very docile and sweet, it was easy to be charmed by her. They had become something like friends lately, and if Regina was to be honest, she was a bit infatuated with her. But this request seemed foreign to her._

_Emma looked flustered at having to explain in further detail. "I mean like a... romantic outing. I know you are required to eat dinner with your parents, so maybe a repast in the afternoon?"_

_Now Regina understood, and her eyes twinkled mischievously. "Romantic? My, how forward of you to ask me that. You are essentially asking permission to court me then?"_

_"Well yes, I suppose so. Unless you do not want it?" Emma was nervous, she was certain she was feeling faint. She hadn't really thought of what would happen if Regina said no._

_"I never said that; I would love it," Regina beamed, emboldened enough to move and deposit a soft kiss on Emma's cheek. "When shall we have our outing then?"_

_Emma thought about it for a bit. Her mind had just short-circuited from Regina's kiss. "How about tomorrow? Instead of our lessons, we could do this."_

_"Perfect. Until tomorrow then." Emma was left staring at Regina's back as she left, smiling like a dork, widening when Regina reached the mansion's door and she turned back for a last wave to Emma._

* * *

When Henry came out of school, he saw Emma and ran up to her with only the enthusiasm a ten year-old child can have. "Hey Emma!"

"Hey kid, how was school?" Emma greeted.

"Good," he replied with a smile. Then he added, "You do know you can call me Henry, right?"

She did, but she didn't want to think about it. Calling him Henry would mean getting closer, putting a name to the child that she thought she'd never get to see again. She might still lose him. If Regina woke up one day and decided that she'd had enough of Emma, she'd be powerless to stop her. So keeping her distance made sense. It'd keep her safe. But she couldn't tell him that, so she just hummed and asked, "So, what's next on the happy endings roster?"

Henry automatically took the bait, prattling off about this or that. "I was wondering lately, there are some people here who don't have a happy ending in the book."

Emma frowned. "So what happens then? Do we just leave them alone?"

"No! We can't do that, we have to find a happy ending for them."

"Ah, but how would we do that? Do we just ask everyone 'what would your ideal happy ending look like?' and see what they answer?'" Emma asked.

Henry scoffed. "Not like that. The book should give us a few clues."

"Right, the mysterious book that I'm still not allowed to see..." Emma had tried to ask both Henry and Regina for it, since after all, she should be well-informed as to what she was supposedly dealing with. But they both denied her the opportunity.

"It's on a need-to-know basis," Henry responded now, parroting the same answer as always. In truth, he wanted to show Emma, but both he and his mom were worried that seeing an image of someone looking a lot like her, not to mention seeing her name in the story twice, would make things more complicated. "And right now, all you need to know is that you're the Saviour."

Emma nodded, dropping the subject, knowing it was futile to pursue it. "Okay, so do you want to meet up with your mom and figure out who we should work with next?"

Henry shook his head. "Not yet. I figured we could have a side operation, Operation Cobra."

"What?" Emma blurted, completely lost. She stopped walking, which also prompted Henry to stop, and she turned to look at him. "What is this side operation, and what does it have to do with cobras?"

"Operation Cobra is just a name, something we can call this mission without anyone finding out what it's about," Henry explained, channeling his inner Regina as he looked at Emma pointedly. "We're going to get my mom her happy ending."

"Ah." Now Emma understood the secrecy. "I'm guessing she's one of those people that have no happy ending in the book?"

"Well, she did have a happy ending, once. But she lost it, so we have to find her happy ending here. The details aren't important." If Emma was feeling overwhelmed before, she was reeling now.

"Could you be any vaguer?" Emma muttered. She was trying to be a good sport with this whole venture, and she had to admit that seeing Kathryn and Jim hit it off did make her wonder if there was some tiny basis in the theories, because there was no earthly way anyone could've known the two would be such a great match. But when Henry threw her in for a loop, she was certain that any accredited psychiatrist would think her insane.

"Sure!" Henry beamed, like the cheeky kid he was.

Emma shook her head playfully and smiled, resuming their walking. "Okay fine, I don't need to know. Do you at least have something in mind for who or what your mom's happy ending could be?"

Henry made a show of seeming like he was thinking about it. "Actually, I do have one idea..."

Giving Henry a sceptical look at his tone, she tersely asked, "Am I going to like this idea?"

"Depends on how much you like my mom."

At first, Emma didn't understand what Henry was implying with 'like', so she responded, "I like her well enough, she's friendly."

"Not that kind of like," Henry amended.

Emma froze, and Henry rolled his eyes. Honestly, getting both his moms together should be easy, right?

It had been a plan he'd been hatching over the past week. His mom had the right to a happy ending just as much as Snow White did, so why couldn't he try to surprise her with it? And that's what he had been doing. The problem was getting the ball rolling. He figured he had a better chance with getting Emma to agree to the idea. Plus his mom wouldn't need to do anymore hard work trying to get her happy ending, all she had to do was say yes when Emma asked her on a date.

"Kid...maybe that wouldn't be the best idea," Emma sighed.

Henry wouldn't be so easily swayed to drop this plan. He had gone to Boston to get her. This was a walk in the park. "Why not? I know she likes you."

"She does?" Emma's voice sounded hopeful and disbelieving.

" _Duh_. Why do you think she was so friendly to you?" There were times that Emma really could see that despite his heightened intelligence, Henry really was just a kid.

Emma sighed. "Maybe this isn't the best idea."

"Why not?"

"It's too much at once. I just moved two states to live here for a while, plus meeting you was a big surprise, and I have to help with the fairytale thing, my love life can take a back seat." She didn't want to mention that she was afraid of being turned down, not completely convinced that Henry's assessment of his mom's feelings towards her were entirely accurate.

But Henry persisted. "What if it helps? What if she's the one for you? Not to mention that _you_ need a happy ending too. Just try, please?"

And she found she couldn't say no. A part of her - she wouldn't admit to the size - did wonder about what it'd be like. How perfect would the world be, to give her this? The family she always wanted with the mother of her son, the three of them together. Regina was an enigma and at the same time, fascinating. It made her want to spend all the time with her. Plus she was gorgeous, which definitely helped matters.

So they were in agreement, Emma would ask Regina out on a date. They walked over to Town Hall, where Emma would drop Henry off before heading back to work and figure out how to best approach asking Regina out.

They passed by Kathryn, who smiled brightly at them, and then walked into Regina's office, where the Mayor was hard at work. But she stopped everything when she saw Henry, a soft smile on her face as she greeted and hugged him.

Once she stood back up, she turned to Emma with just as soft a smile. "May I have a word?"

"Sure." They walked back out, and Emma followed Regina to an empty room. Unbeknownst to Emma, Kathryn had grinned knowingly at Regina when they exited the office. Once they were inside, Emma asked, "What's up?"

"I was wondering if you wanted to go out on a date with me?" The words sounded like Regina was asking about the weather, and definitely lacked the curious intonation that she would've wanted to have. She wanted to mimic the words Emma had asked her so many years ago that began all of this, but she felt she wasn't too successful in its execution. To be frank, Regina hadn't been sure she'd have been able to ask. She was sure she'd freeze up and balk. But the words were out, she just had to wait for Emma's answer and hope it was yes.

Emma was stunned for a few seconds before she cleared her head and grinned, relieved. "Yeah!"

"You will?" Regina could hardly believe it, she was one step closer, things were working out for once.

"Of course! Funny thing, I was actually going to ask you the same thing."

Regina laughed. "Really?"

"Yeah, no thanks to Henry," Emma added with a smile. When Regina seemed curious, she added, "Our son roped me into asking you out on the pretense of happy endings. I still would've probably asked you eventually, but he gave me an extra push."

"Is that so?" Regina bit her lip, amused by how sneaky Henry was being about all of this.

"Yep, so how about this? Since you asked, I'll plan the date. That way it can be a combined effort," Emma suggested.

"Very well, so what's the plan Emma?"

Emma was certain that Regina's pronunciation of her name would be the death of her. "How about dinner on Friday? I'll pick you up at your place."

Beaming, Regina nodded. "Sounds perfect. I'll see you then."

* * *

_Emma took a deep breath. She was holding a picnic basket with the provisions of their date, courtesy of Andre, and awaiting for Regina to arrive. Right on time, Regina appeared, dressed for her lesson. Their attire was by no means romantic, but hopefully they'd still make the best of it._

_"I'm glad you could join," Emma said with a grin. Then she held out her arm for Regina to take. "Shall we?"_

_Taking the arm and looping her own through it, Regina asked, "Of course, what did you have in mind?"_

_"Well I figured out we should get away from the house; are you up to ride for a bit?" Emma didn't want to admit she was nervous, but a big part of her was dreading what would happen if anything should fail. It was just a simple meal, nothing too extravagant for the young lady, but she still had butterflies._

_They got on their horses - Emma had already readied them beforehand - and started their ride towards a special place that she knew Regina would enjoy. when they arrived, Regina let out a soft gasp. It was the hill by her apple tree, a blanket already laid out._

_Emma got off from Milton and then helped Regina down from Rocinante. "Wait here," she said, leading both horses to a pasture where she could tether them. When she came back, she bowed a bit and held her hand out, palm up, for Regina to take._

_Regina took it with a small laugh, enlightened by her antics, now playful and not at all about propriety. She placed her hand on Emma's, and the latter gently curled her hand around the other's, and smiled as she was led to the blanket. Emma set down the basket in front of them, and proceeded to take out a water skin and two copper goblets. "I do apologize that this isn't silverware but-"_

_"It's fine, Emma," Regina said, resting a comforting hand on her arm. She saw Emma visibly relax, shoulders sagging. "Don't be nervous. I'm loving this."_

_With a shaky smile, she nodded, taking out the sweet buns and wooden plates. "Yeah, I just want this to go perfectly. I know we're not from the same social circles, and your mother will undoubtedly try to force you to marry someone of your station but-"_

_"Stop," Regina interjected, voice sounding regal and commanding. In times like these, the woman who would one day become queen was evidently there. But now, her brows were furrowed, eyes kind and yet unbroken as she continued, "Emma, I don't care about your status. You are incredibly kind to me and you care about me. That is enough. I won't let my mother decide who I get to love. Like in the stories of old, I'll choose my own love, and right now, that's you."_

_Emma felt elated at the words, and proceeded to give Regina one of the best evenings of her life._

_"Thank you," Regina said when they had returned to the stables, and stood on her tip toes to deposit a small chaste kiss on Emma's lips._

* * *

Both Regina and Emma were wracked with nerves. There was so much at stake, and neither knew the other felt just as nervous as they prepared for their date at their respective homes.

"Oh relax Emma, I'm sure you'll be fine." Mary Margaret had decided to bring her unique form of hope and optimism - she could see why Henry would think of her as Snow White - into play, and Emma was much too nice to tell her roommate that no amount of faith would quell her nerves.

"Easy for you to say," Emma muttered. "I think my butterflies have butterflies."

Mary Margaret nodded. "I realize that Regina isn't the easiest to get to know, and I should know, seeing as how I still don't know what I did wrong for her to dislike me so vehemently."

"Well, if we're going by Henry's storybook idea, we're talking about Snow White and the Evil Queen, so it's not that far-fetched."

"Funny," Mary Margaret said, rolling her eyes. "But the point I was trying to get across was that you got to her and that means you're special. And if she's willing to take that initiative and move one step forward, then she already cares enough about you, and there is no way this date could go wrong."

" _Mar_ ," Emma whined, using the nickname she had gifted her roommate with, in order to not have to spew out all those syllables every time she wanted to say her name. "That is exactly the kind of thing that makes something go terrible."

Mary Margaret cringed. "Right! Uhh, I'm sure it'll go terrible!'

Emma was very close to just face-palming. "It doesn't exactly work that way, but thanks for the vote of confidence."

Soon enough, it was time. She checked herself in the mirror once again, and nodded. Black dress pants along with a blue silk button shirt. Simple but still elegant. "Wish me luck!"

Rolling her eyes, Mary Margaret practically pushed her out the door. "Do you want a four-leaf clover too to pin to your lapel? Stop being so superstitious and go!"

So Emma left, a bouquet of flowers in hand, going to her car and driving to Regina's house. When she arrived, she took a deep breath before going up to the door, and knocking. Henry opened and offered her a smile, beckoning her inside. Once the door closed, his smile fell and an adorable frown that he probably believed was intimidating graced his face. "I know you think that being my mom will mean I'll go easy on you, but I still have to know: what are your intentions with my mom?"

"Henry, you're the one who convinced me to go out with her!" Emma responded, incredulous.

"Not the right answer," he responded in a sing-song voice.

Right then, Regina had arrived, sporting a gorgeous red dress, and added, "You know, I'm curious about it myself."

Sighing playfully, she held out the flowers, that Regina took with a shy smile. Then she responded, "Fine, I'm here to hopefully take your mom on one of the best dates she's been on. I promise I'll treat her with respect, and have her home before midnight."

Satisfied, he hugged them both in turn, and watched them leave, promising to behave and put the flowers in water. Regina had debated hiring a nanny, but she figured she should show some modicum of trust for her son.

"Ready?" Emma asked as they headed to her car.

Regina scrunched her nose up. "We're not really taking that thing, are we?"

"What's wrong with the bug?" Emma pouted.

"It's a deathtrap!" Regina responded, gesturing to it.

Eventually, Emma convinced her that it would survive the trip, and they made their way to the restaurant. "I heard that this was the only one, Tony's."

Regina nodded and smiled. When they entered the restaurant, the man himself was waiting for them. Tony was Andre, the old cook at the Mills' estate, transferred to her employ when she reigned, and he always offered her comforting food when she needed it. Although he was cursed and had no idea of their history, he still beamed when he saw them come in. Something within him made him feel that this was something important to be happening, like it held a deeper significance.

Dinner turned out to be perfect, personally cared for by Tony himself in a more private booth, and he even waived the bill. "With how happy you two are, I am humbled to have been your server for this first outing, and I wish you both much happiness together."

When they got into the car, Emma jokingly asked, "So who do you think he was supposed to be in the storybook?" The restaurant guy from Lady and the Tramp? I think his name was Tony too."

Scoffing, Regina responded, "Don't be silly, he didn't have an accordion."

"Not gonna lie, I was sure he was going to bring it out at one point," Emma commented. He had the right build for it, even the moustache. They continued discussing whether or not he could be, and eventually made their way back to Regina's house. Emma accompanied her to the door, following behind a few steps.

"I had a wonderful time tonight, thank you," Regina said, turning to her date as they reached the porch.

Emma smiled proudly, walking up to her until they were only inches apart, hands in her pockets. "Thank you for asking me out."

Feeling emboldened, Emma closed the distance and kissed her. Regina drank it up gleefully, the familiar lips tasted just how she remembered, and she couldn't get enough of it. Her hands slid up to cup Emma's face, kissing her fervently. Emma was also eager, arms snaking around Regina's waist as their kiss deepened.

Eventually, they had to break for air. It was then that Regina decided that Emma had to know the truth. "Could you come in? There's something I want to talk to you about."

Emma agreed, a small part of her apprehensive about what was about to transpire. They went inside, and Regina led them to the study, where the infamous book she had seen the night all of this started was resting. The brunette went up to the table and stood in front of it, hands clasped in front of her.

"I can't lie to you," Regina started. "For many reasons, but especially because you should know the truth. You deserve to know."

"Okay..." Emma carefully responded, unsure where this was going.

Regina sighed and then said, "Emma, Henry's fairytale theory is real."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooooh I know, I'm evil.
> 
> So what do you think? Will Emma believe Regina, or not?
> 
> Anyway, that's where I shall leave you fine folks until the new year!
> 
> Next up will be a double update of How many times can a heart break? then Date in the Name of the Law.
> 
> I'd love to know your thoughts, and I hope everyone has an amazing and safe holiday season.


	7. Touch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, I know, 10 months is quite a while.
> 
> But I am going to not be evil and give everyone quite a chapter! We'll see what Emma says to Regina's confession, plus two new couples introduced!
> 
> So I shan't bore anyone with long messages, just add: Thank you everyone! I'm loving the enthusiasm and the support!
> 
> Hope you enjoy this!

"What?" Emma blinked, sure she had heard wrong. Maybe this was a prank?

Regina seemed to understand Emma's inability to comprehend, so she added, "I am, or well, I _was_ , the Evil Queen. The town is cursed, everyone here is a fairytale, and you are the Saviour."

Emma shook her head, taking an involuntary step back. "No, that's crazy. This whole thing is crazy."

"I know this is a lot to process," Regina reassured her, wanting to reach out to comfort Emma, but the step back stopped that plan completely.

"No, a lot to process would be if you were trying to explain taxes to me, Regina. _This_ is madness! If this is a joke, or your way of trying to drive me away, then it's all working a little too well," Emma huffed.

" _Drive you away_?" Regina repeated, astonished. "I am trying to do the exact opposite!"

"Oh sure, that's a wonderful idea. Invite your new girlfriend in for a nice bonding session to bring the two of us together only to tell her this ridiculous fairytale idea is real!"

Regina scoffed, incredulous that Emma was behaving so stubbornly. "Us arguing is ridiculous, because it's not some fictional idea, this is very much real! That's why I want to tell you this now. I don't want to build this relationship on a lie!"

Her words were enough to make Emma pause, and with a deep breath, Regina continued, "Look, I would want nothing more than to have left the date at that, and continued this wonderful relationship as it is and let our feelings build. But I know the truth Emma. I know what is real.

"For a second, let go of your disbelief. Just imagine, if you will, that everything I just told you is actually real. Fairytales are all around you, and when the curse breaks, as it's due to happen, you realize that Henry's theory had been true all along. Imagine that I hadn't told you until that very moment. Wouldn't you have been angry that I lied to you? That I led you on without informing you what you were getting into?" Regina sighed sorrowfully and added, "As I said, I know that this is a lot to take in. Everything you ever believed isn't as you thought it would be. Magic is real, fairytales aren't just confined to books, and you are at the center of it. So please, try to ask yourself this: Wouldn't everything make more sense if it all _was_ real?" Regina asked.

"It definitely would explain Kathryn and Jim," Emma conceded after a moment of silence. "But that could have been a fluke really. Set an attractive guy and a girl together and there's bound to be some chemistry."

Regina hummed. "Then let's switch things up a bit. Let's find a couple like us. Two women. Not everyone in this town is gay, and surely, according to you, the book can't be right twice, and about a lesbian couple to boot?"

Emma thought about it for a moment. It would be an easy way to disprove it. But..."You could have just frequented the gay bars in town and find two women who you know work well together."

Sighing, Regina tried to remain calm. "You're really enjoying playing the devil's advocate here aren't you? And much to our chagrin, we actually don't have _any_ gay bars, but even if I did know, there wouldn't be an image in the book of two women locking lips who resembled two people in town, would there?"

"The book has pictures?" Emma asked, surprised.

Regina had forgotten Emma hadn't seen the book, and so she beckoned Emma to the desk, bringing the book. She didn't want to show Emma the image of the two of them, so she flipped to Kathryn and Jim's chapter, reuniting after the curse on him had been lifted with Kathryn helping Jim down from the pedestal, while the latter removed his helmet.

"Exhibit A, Kathryn and Jim," Regina showed.

Emma glanced at the entire spread, noting, "Abigail and Frederick. Stuffy names."

Regina smiled. "They were stuffy times. Now, these are our next... targets, if you will"

As Emma once more pored over the spreads, she noted the picture of the dark-skinned woman with long black hair locking lips with a light-skinned woman with short brown hair. "Rapunzel and...Jack? You're going to tell me Rapunzel is gay?"

"Indeed. And in this world, their names are Cassandra and Alex, respectively."

* * *

_Jack cursed under her breath. As if nearly dying wasn't terrifying enough, now she was on the run and guards were closing in on her. Not something any thief enjoyed._

_It was hard to believe that a little over a year ago, she had been bedding a crown prince. Prince James had been a devious partner all around, but she didn't mind at the time, she rather enjoyed it. Until he betrayed her and left her for dead._

_She had been ready to get her revenge on him, make him suffer like she had. But from what she had heard, he had now become a proper prince, intent on catching criminals and punishing them with the full extent of the law, so the kingdom's guards were more present, and therefore, they posed more of a danger to her._

_No, she had given up going that route. It would just end badly. Now she just wanted to get away from this place. She'd already changed her appearance by cutting off most of her hair so no one would recognize her. All she needed was enough money to travel, and she'd be free. The problem was getting that money. As a thief, her first solution was to steal it all. But that method, combined with the extra vigilance, meant that she was now on the entire kingdom's radar. No one had a good drawing of her face, but her wanted posters were all over, and town criers were promising heaping rewards to anyone who could offer information or directly hand her to the authorities, dead or alive. So, with all eyes on her, the prince's guards were closing in, and she did not want to know what they did to undead thieves._

_Now, she was hiding in a tree on the outskirts of the latest town she had exhausted, perched on a branch precariously, trying to make as little noise as possible. After the guards passed by underneath her hiding spot, Jack got down and straightened her vest. Looking up at the sky, she noted the incoming storm clouds. She had to find a place with a roof, and fast. Maybe there would be a hamlet nearby that she could hide in until the heat died down._

_She preferred to travel off-road, knowing there was less chance of being caught._

_Suddenly, she noticed that the rock face to her left had a patch of vines growing only on a narrow section. The leaves were moving as if a breeze were passing through it, even though the air near her was still. Approaching the rock, she held her hand out, and as she had suspected, her hand phased through, rather than making contact with a surface. Pushing the rest of her body through the leaves, Jack saw she was now inside a cave._

_No, not a cave. There was a light source coming from further inside that seemed too large for a campfire. Continuing to walk, she saw the tunnel opened up, and it exited onto a clearing. It was a nice valley, surrounded by cliffs, with a small pond. But the truly perfect thing was the nicely-sized chateau in the middle. It had two floors, and a tall tower protruding from it. There was smoke coming from the chimney of the main house, which meant someone clearly lived here. But surely no one would live in the tower when there was so much free space inside the actual house, right?_

_It was the perfect hiding spot, but how would she get in?_

_She looked through the window, no one was there. Knocking on the door, she hid by the side of the house and waited to see if anyone would appear._

_Nothing._

_She tried the handle, and surprisingly enough, it was open._

_Exploring the inside of the house, she found that only a few rooms were in use. A bedroom, the kitchen, and a living room. But there was no door for the tower._

_Praising her good luck, she went back outside, and figured she could use the vines growing on the side of the tower to climb to the top._

_After climbing a beanstalk, this was easy. Less than an hour later, she grabbed the ledge and heaved herself over._

_The top of the tower was dark, and her eyes were taking a while to adjust._

_"Who are you and what do you want?" a voice demanded._

_Whipping around, Jack tried to locate the source of the voice. It was a woman, that much she was sure._

_"I'm just a weary traveller in need of shelter," she tried, hoping the voice wasn't either cunning nor smart._

_"If you were looking for shelter, you would have stayed downstairs, not climbed all the way up here. Besides, I saw you when you approached, you went inside the house as if looking for something."_

_Jack sighed. So much for that. "Fine, I am on the run, and I was trying to see if I could hide here for a while. Happy?"_

_"Much." There was some rustling, and then Jack saw a figure approach her._

_It was a young woman -and in Jack's opinion, very beautiful - with dark skin and long black hair. Well, long was an understatement. Even braided it still made many loops around on the floor and it hung from beams above their heads. "So who are you hiding from?"_

_Jack glanced from the skillet the woman was holding and back to her face. She couldn't hold her gaze for some reason, so she looked back down and mumbled, "People."_

_Before either woman could say anything else, they heard a voice sing out, "Rapunzel! Let down your hair!"_

_Jack whipped around at the new woman's voice coming from below, and as she was about to approach the open window she came through, she felt and heard a dull thunk, and then everything went dark._

* * *

The next morning, as Emma made her way to the station, her mind preoccupied.

Regina had dropped quite a bomb down on her last night, but the strangest thing was: she could actually see it being true. Not that she would ever admit it, at least not right now. No, first she had to get concrete proof. Once could certainly be a coincidence, but having two couples fall in love with the right person had to mean something deeper was going on.

So, she agreed to give the theory a chance. Regina promised her that she hadn't talked to either woman recently, nor was she going to contact them.

She was allowing Emma to do this one by herself. Regina merely told Emma where she could find both women, and they parted ways awkwardly, with a lopsided smile and silence.

Now, she checked in with Graham, told him she was going to patrol the outskirts, familiarize herself with the borders and limits of the town. She actually had a destination in mind, but she didn't exactly want to make a big deal of it in front of Graham. He was pretty by-the-book, and taking time off to pursue a potential fairytale character certainly wasn't what she was supposed to be doing.

"That sounds fantastic!" Graham grinned, nodding. "You can also meet Alex, she's a forest ranger, and in charge of making sure the town limits are safe. Not the most social person, but you can learn a lot from her. Tell her I said hi."

She nodded and took a map that he offered, and with a wave, she headed out and went towards the forest in her car.

Half an hour later, Emma was walking down the path towards a cabin, periodically checking the map Graham had given her.

After a few moments, she saw the cabin and she breathed a sigh of relief. She'd never been great with maps or directions, and she didn't want to end up lost and going in circles.

"You there!" a voice called out. "Who are you?"

Emma saw a woman, who she surmised must be Alex. She greeted, hoping the frosty tone would thaw, "Hey, my name is Emma, I'm the new Deputy here in Storybrooke."

"I can see that," Alex responded with a sly smirk, glancing at the badge on her hip.

Emma faltered a bit and then smiled. "Yeah, I can be captain obvious sometimes. Anyway, Graham thought it might be a good idea if we got acquainted and had you show me around the area... for patrol reasons."

Alex didn't react for a second, and then her serious facade broke and she guffawed. "Did he now? How is the old bastard anyway?"

"He's good, he says hi" Emma responded, smiling wider now. At least she seemed friendlier now. From what she'd heard, she was expecting a grouch who loved her musket a little bit too much and would bark at her to leave.

"Oh where are my manners? Name's Alex, forest ranger and sort of a lone wolf." Alex extended her hand and Emma took it, shaking firmly. "Shall we get started?"

Emma nodded, and together, they set off. Emma learned about the toll bridge and the teenage ruffians that frequented here.

"You got a kid, Deputy?" Alex asked. "'Cause I warn you, kids try to pull this 'but my dad's so and so!' schtick to try and get out of trouble, but I have zero interest in hearing about that, and will arrest anyone's kid."

"You don't have to worry about that. I've only got one kid; his name is Henry and he's 10. He's actually Regina's kid legally. She's the mayor." Emma said with an easy smile.

Alex laughed. "Oh I'm well aware who Regina is, but I am curious as to how you fit the picture."

"Maybe after we're done here, we can go to Granny's for lunch and I can tell you all about that," Emma offered, segueing right back onto her plan.

"Done deal. Been a while since I've been into town," Alex mused.

They walked around for a while longer, and the more Emma learnt about the town, the more she felt at home here. Soon enough, it was lunch time, and Alex wrapped things up.

"Now, let's go get some grub," Alex gleefully stated, rubbing her hands together.

Emma let out a laugh, and as they made their way back, she asked, "So why do you keep to yourself so much?"

Alex shrugged. "Dunno. Never had anything of interest to get me to go there. If I do go, it's because I need to buy groceries or talk to someone or other about their kid, or something. Otherwise, got no reason to venture out there."

Once they were out of the forest, Emma started walking towards Granny's. "Don't have a special someone?"

Alex made a disgruntled noise. "Please don't tell me you're gonna be like Graham and try to set me up with someone. Wait...did he put you up to this?!"

Emma quickly put her hands up placatingly. "Whoa whoa, relax, he didn't tell or ask me to do anything, promise."

After glaring at Emma for a few seconds more, Alex relaxed, seeming convinced that Emma wasn't acting on Graham's behalf. "Sorry, he's just been trying to find me someone since forever, and he fails terribly every single time."

As they walked down Main Street, Emma asked, "Any specific reason for that? I mean, I never would have figured Graham to be a competent matchmaker, but-" She stopped talking when she realized that Alex was a bit preoccupied with her hair, which was quite longer than the picture she had seen, it went past her shoulders now. "Alex? Everything alright?"

"Yeah," Alex said with a goofy smile, looking beyond Emma. "Just hadn't realized that my hair had gotten so long."

Glancing behind her at the hair salon that was half a block down the road, Emma smirked as she asked, "I'm sure it has nothing to do with the cute girl that's currently drawing on the sign in front of the salon right?"

Alex looked sheepish at being caught and Emma was quick to add, "No judgment, just go get her! A friend of mine tells me her name is Cassandra, if that helps."

"It really does." After a brief clasp of Emma's shoulder, Alex adjusted her own leather jacket and then added, "Well, I'm going in, catch you around?"

"Definitely," Emma said with a nod, unable to stop a smile from blooming on her face as she saw Alex head towards Cassandra, who was very focused on her drawing. She decided to keep watching for a little while longer, just to see if it really did all work out.

* * *

_Jack groaned as she came to, seeing darkness all around her. "What the-"_

_Suddenly, the doors opened and Jack stumbled out of the wardrobe and onto the floor. "Oh I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to cause you any pain, I was just trying to protect you from mother. She can't know you're here!"_

_"You could have just told me to hide," Jack responded with a wince as she got back up._

_The other woman shook her head vehemently. "Oh no, mother can read minds!"_

_Jack raised an eyebrow. "Read minds? What sort of witchcraft is this?"_

_"It's true! Mother sometimes can divine things just like that." Rapunzel snapped her fingers to prove her point._

_Still skeptical, Jack asked, "Are you sure you aren't just a really bad liar?"_

_The young woman harrumphed. "Honestly! If I were a bad liar, mother would have found you. The fact she didn't should be a testament of my fibbing abilities."_

_Jack conceded to that fact. "Thanks then. So she keeps you a prisoner?"_

_"No, she keeps me safe. A lot of people might want to kidnap me and harm me."_

_"Why would they do that?"_

_"I can't tell you why." The young woman seemed like she did want to share the reason why, but then she shook her head and grinned. "But I can tell you my name! I'm Rapunzel. You are?"_

_Jack faltered. Due to her undead status, she had adopted a pseudonym, that of the dashing Flynn Rider. That name, coupled with her short hair, made her pass as a young man unperturbed. But with Rapunzel, Jack was remiss at having to lie to her. "Jack, short for Jaqueline."_

_Rapunzel smiled wryly. "Why the pause? Do you have another name you go by?"_

_"Somewhat." And so Jack went on to explain all that had happened to her in the past year. She trusted Rapunzel, strange as it seemed, and she couldn't deny she felt an attraction to her._

_In turn, Rapunzel opened up, talking about her many years in the tower, having very little friends apart from woodland creatures to keep her company. "I just want to explore the world! I've read so much about it, and yet I have never stepped foot outside of this tower."_

_"Never?!" Jack repeated, flabbergasted._

_Rapunzel shook her head._

_Jack thought about it for a moment then decided, "Let's go then. You and me. We can go and explore the world."_

_"But what about the people that would want to do me harm?" Rapunzel asked._

_Jack smiled reassuringly. "Look, if anyone had been chasing down a damsel hidden away in a tower, I would have heard about it, and besides, I'll be around to keep you company and make sure no one hurts you."_

_Rapunzel ducked her head to hide her blush, but Jack saw it._

_"What do you say?" Jack asked, holding out her hand._

_With a definitive nod, Rapunzel took the proffered hand, and together, they made their way down the tower and out of the hidden valley._

* * *

Emma had been watching the two women talk with a smile, but internally she was bewildered. Could Regina have been telling her the truth? Could it be Henry's theory wasn't just a figment of his imagination?

"Perdita! Pongo! Get back here!"

Emma whipped around, and saw a woman chasing after two dalmatians. She ran after them, her mind whirring even more now. Were the 101 dalmatians also part of this?

She eventually chased the woman and her two dogs down to Storybrooke park, where a man with a ukulele was getting tackled by the two dalmatians.

"Excuse me!" Emma called out with a wave.

The two turned to look at her. They looked familiar, though Emma couldn't exactly say where she could know them from. "Sorry to barge in, but I saw you running after your dogs and I was wondering if everything was okay?"

The woman nodded, smiling softly. "Oh yes! Truly sorry about that Deputy, our dogs love my husband's music, and whenever they hear it they go nuts and run right after him, no matter how far away they are. It's one hell of a workout I'll tell you that much."

The man let out a rich laugh. "It's very much like how we met. Our dogs ran away and we met in the confusion."

Emma grinned. "Sounds like a wonderful story- I'm sorry, I didn't catch your names?"

"Oh!" the woman exclaimed with a chuckle. "I'm Tiana, and this is my husband Naveen."

Emma blinked. This couldn't be real. Before she could ask anything else, the dogs began jumping up to greet her. She let out a laugh and petted them. "So what do you two do, if you don't mind me asking?"

Naveen held out his instrument. "I do concerts in the park-"

"And I work part-time at Granny's. I'm trying to get a restaurant opened up, but it's proving to be impossible."

"Oh really?" Emma asked, still trying to figure out what was going on.

"Yeah, bureaucracy is making this a mess. If I get approval from one place then another denies me. I re-apply and then the whole process starts over again."

Emma hummed. "Well maybe I can poke around and see what's the hold-up."

Tiana's face brightened. "You would? That's wonderful! Oh thank you Deputy, you have just made my day."

Naveen shook her hand vigorously, and after they parted ways, Emma managed to keep her composure until she was halfway to Town Hall. She practically burst into Regina's offices, startling Kathryn.

"Is Regina free?" Emma asked, a bit shaken.

Kathryn nodded and then frowned. "You okay Emma? You look a little pale."

Emma waved it off. "Yeah yeah, just a crazy morning."

Once she was inside, Emma let out a deep breath.

Regina looked up from her work and when she saw Emma practically collapse in the chair in front of her desk, she grew worried. She got up from her chair and made her way to stand in front of Emma, leaning against the desk."Emma, what happened?"

And so Emma explained, meeting Alex, getting her to head into town and then Cassandra being there. "It was like magic really, Alex just started talking about her hair being long, I didn't even have to pry."

Regina nodded along. "But that's not what startled you," she stated, more than asked.

"Yeah. Apparently 101 dalmatians existed in your world? But in this world, they are the same characters from the movie Princess and the Frog. So either this is a super crazy prank, or you are telling the truth."

"And which one do you think it is?" Regina calmly asked.

"The latter. You and Henry are telling the truth. You're a fairy-tale character," Emma said disbelievingly.

Regina smiled slightly. "Well, I think that by all technicalities, I'm a villain."

Emma frowned and stood up. "Not to me. To me you've just been Regina. The woman who raised Henry into the amazing kid he is today."

Moving forward, Emma placed a gentle kiss on Regina's lips. "I'm sorry for going all crazy on you last night."

"Don't apologize. It's one hell of a story to wrap your head around, I'm just happy you accepted it sooner rather than later. I was expecting we'd be trying to make you believe for months to come." Regina gave Emma a kiss of her own.

With a grin, Emma riposted, "You're lucky I'm not that stubborn then."

Regina hummed. "Considering your parentage, it's a huge relief."

Emma's face fell at that response. "So wait, they really are my parents?"

"Yes," Regina admitted with a slight nod.

Taking a step back, Emma frowned. "Not that I'm accusing you or anything, but if that is true, why do you like me? I mean, I'd have figured that being the child of your enemies would automatically put me at the top of your shit list or something."

Regina sighed. She figured this would eventually come up. "There's another part to this story that you don't really know."

Emma watched as Regina went around her desk and fished the large leather tome out of her bag. "Do you carry that thing with you everywhere?"

"Well, Henry wants it to be safe, and I figured you might come to my office at some point today with the realization that this was all true, so here we are." Regina flashed a tentative smile, and then grabbed the chair from behind her desk and wheeled it beside Emma. She sat down, and before she opened the book, Regina looked at Emma straight in the eye and said, "I just want to say something first, before we start. This book has a lot of information. Some of it is accurate, and some of it isn't. It might not be totally untrue, but it is biased and skewed to show the heroes always in a good and noble light. Some things you might not enjoy reading, but please let me explain first, okay?"

"Regina, if this is about the things you did as the Evil Queen, I will understand. Obviously I don't condone violence, but I'm-"

"No, this is not about that...not really. You see, there is a reason we didn't show you the book at first…" Regina opened the book to the last pages, depicting Charming placing baby Emma in the wardrobe.

"Oh my god," Emma breathed, grabbing the book and pulling it close to her.

Regina frowned. That had not been the reaction she was expecting, at least not from in this page. "What is it?"

Tears prickled Emma's eyes as she said, "That's my baby blanket. I've had it since forever." Emma's lips quirked into a smile. "You really should have shown this to me, I would have totally believed you from the get go."

"Perhaps," Regina began, before reaching out to grab the pages of the book, and flipping back to the beginning, and the image of Regina with her stable girl. "But then I would have to explain this as well.

Emma said nothing at first. She just looked. Again and again. The similarities were uncanny, this could only be her. "How…what happened?"

"I honestly don't know." Regina explained everything as best as she could, about her mother and what she had done to the stable girl, of her own subsequent grief and hunting Snow down, and of the curse. She also spoke of her investigation as to how Emma could possibly resemble the stable girl.

By the time she was finished, it was dark out, and Emma was reeling. "Wow. That's...a lot to take in. So there's no leads? Nothing that points to how I'm exactly like her?"

"Nothing. You are Snow's child, so you can't be the same woman brought back to life, but your similarities make me wonder if you could be some form of her reincarnation."

"Does that happen often?" Emma asked.

Regina shook her head. "I've never heard of it, but it certainly wouldn't be the craziest thing I'd have heard."

Emma nodded distractedly. "This is a lot to take in."

"I know, if you need time, I understand."

Emma shook her head. "Not really. I'll just sleep on it. Talk to you tomorrow?"

Regina nodded, and smiled when Emma gave her a kiss on her cheek.

Just as Emma was about to reach the door, Regina called her name. When Emma turned in recognition, Regina said, "I just wanted to answer your question and to make something clear. Despite your obvious resemblance to that Emma, my attraction to you is real and of who you are now." Regina gave a faint smile before adding, "Perhaps your similarity opened my heart up to the idea of love again, rather than wanting to run you out of town, but my feelings are for you, not her memory."

Emma walked back to Regina, saying nothing. When she was in front of her, she cupped her face and gave her a soft kiss on her lips. "Of course I know, I can see it when you look at me. You're not looking at a memory. When we first met, yeah you were, but not now."

Regina surged forward to kiss Emma again with fervor, happy she could see the truth. Emma eagerly responded, hands wrapping around her girlfriend's waist.

"See you tomorrow?" Emma asked when they parted.

"Of course," Regina reassured her.

* * *

When Emma arrived at the apartment, she found Mary Margaret getting ready to leave. "Hey Mar," Emma greeted. "Heading out?"

"Oh yes, I have to go do my volunteer work at the hospital." Mary Margaret then thought about it for a moment before she asked, "Could you come and help me? I have papers to grade and it would really speed things up if you came along."

Emma had been hoping to head to bed early. After the whirlwind day of discoveries, her oncoming migraine was asking for rest to in order for her to cope and figure out how everything worked. But, looking at Mary Margaret's hopeful expression - and the fact she was her mother was not lost on her - made her reconsider. "Yeah, I could use it."

"Great!" Mary Margaret beamed.

On the drive over, Mary Margaret piped up, "So, what happened that you said you could use this?"

Emma faltered, trying to think of what to say. "Nothing really, just adjusting to this."

Mary Margaret hummed. "No, I think there's more to it. But if you don't want to talk about it now, that's fine. I'm here when you do."

"Thanks, that means a lot to me." And it did for Emma, who had gone for so long without being able to confide in anyone. Especially not a mother - cursed or otherwise.

When they arrived, Mary Margaret was quick to explain what she did. "I basically hand out flowers and say a few words of encouragement. It might not be much, but it brightens their faces, so I keep doing it."

They were nearly done when Emma noticed the remaining flower. "Who is that for?"

Mary Margaret smiled sorrowfully. "David."

When Emma looked confused, her friend added, "He's a patient that's been in a coma forever."

They went to his room, and when Mary Margaret opened the door, Emma recognized the man from the picture. It was her dad.

"He used to be Kathryn's husband, but they had an amicable divorce many years ago. Everyone thought he would leave town after it, pursue other things, but he got into an accident just before he could. It was Regina who found him. According to Whale, if she hadn't found him, he would have died. Not that his current state is much better," Mary Margaret explained with a hopeful tone. She rested her hands on David's forearm and looked at him. "I'm hopeful he'll make a full recovery."

Emma nodded along, and then she looked at him. This was her dad, and something within her made her want to reach out and touch him. She would forever wonder if maybe it was some greater force at work, or if she just wanted to feel a connection to her father and feel him near her. Whatever the reason was, she reached out and touched his other forearm.

Immediately, the lights pulsed on and off and the machine hooked up to David started beeping like crazy. Both women jumped back and exclaimed in surprise. As the lights returned to normal and the machine stopped beeping, Mary Margaret sighed. But when she looked at the monitor, the screen was off.

"I'm going to get someone," Mary Margaret stated, hurrying out of the room.

Emma nodded dumbly, and looked once more at David. Had she caused this? She shook her head. That would be impossible, even if she did consider the situation with curses and fairytales. Then she wondered, maybe if she touched him again, she would wake him. So that's exactly what she did, she brought her hand closer to his, but before she could touch him, his hand shot up and grabbed her wrist.

Emma gasped and looked up at David, who was wide awake and looking at her. Then his face softened and his grip loosened. "Emma," he rasped, "You found us."

Before Emma could even react, his eyes closed again and his hand fell back onto the bed.

Nurses burst in, with Mary Margaret towing behind them.

"Emma! What happened?" Mary Margaret asked.

"He woke up," Emma stated, shocked and numb, cradling her wrist.

The nurses began to murmur as they took his vitals. The man Emma assumed to be Doctor Whale came in with a chart on his hand. When he saw Emma and Mary Margaret, he asked them to wait outside or to go home.

They did as he asked, going to the waiting room. Mary Margaret - the pile of tests long-forgotten - did not want to leave until she knew what had happened, and as Emma did not fancy having to walk back home alone, she waited along, but she sat down in the waiting room, rather than stand close to the door of David's room.

Some ten minutes later, Regina walked in. When she saw Emma, she sighed in relief and walked over to her. "What happened?"

Emma explained everything, since there was no one around to overhear them. When she was finished, she asked, "What are you doing here though? Is the mayor notified for these kind of things?"

Regina shook her head. "Not really. Rather, as I'm the one who found David, I was listed as his emergency contact, and I was notified about his little incident."

Whale then came back outside and spoke to all three women together. "So, his vitals have greatly improved, it's almost like magic really. We can't explain it at all, but he's improved greatly. We'll keep monitoring him and let you know of any developments, but now I think the best thing for you three to do is to head home."

And so, they did just that, Regina cordially saying good night to both women and heading back to her car without a further glance. She wished she could have kissed Emma again, but with Mary Margaret there, it made it harder. She didn't want her to know about their relationship, whether she was cursed or not. That woman had already ruined one relationship for her, Regina would be loathe to let it happen again.

* * *

It was the middle of the night when Emma's phone started ringing. She groaned and saw the digital clock on her nightstand show that it was 5am. Whoever was calling had better have a good reason otherwise she was going to chew them out.

"Hello?" she greeted sleepily.

A frazzled woman responded, "Hi Deputy Swan. I understand you were here earlier when the incident with Mr. Nolan happened?"

It took her a few seconds to organize her thoughts and realize what the woman was talking about. "Yeah. Did something happen?"

"Yes. I'm afraid Mr. Nolan has escaped."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quite a chapter huh?
> 
> A lot's been going on hasn't it! I decided to include Rapunzel's story because the way ouat handled it was super poor, and when trying to figure out a potential partner, I figured Jack was a viable alternative. She was a thief and could totally be the Flynn Rider to Rapunzel. Plus, how can you say no to more lady love?
> 
> As for Tiana and Naveen, I've always enjoyed Princess and the Frog, and when I was trying to think of their cursed names, I realized that Tiana is an anagram for Anita from 101 dalmatians, and that's how that came to be! We'll learn more about them in the next chapter, so you haven't heard the last of them yet.
> 
> And oooh David is awake! And he's not cursed, which of course means he ran away from the hospital!
> 
> So that's that for now! Meanwhile I'll be updating How many times can a heart break? and Date in the Name of the Law!
> 
> Let me know your thoughts on this!


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